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PEACE ON EARTH 


VERSUS ANOTHER WORLD-WAR 


BY 


J. C. McFEETERS, D. D. 
MINISTER IN THE 
REFORMED PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH 


AUTHOR OF 


“nF COVENANTERS IN AMERICA” 
“SKETCHES OF THE COVENANTERS” 
“nHE NEW HEAVEN AND THE NEW EARTH” 
“AMERICA IN THE COMING CRISIS” 


‘The Christopher Publishing House 
Boston, U. S. A. 


Copyright 1926 
BY THE CHRISTOPHER PUBLISHING HOUSE 





iw Ss A 


(MADE IN AMERICA) 


TO THE FRIENDS OF JESUS AND LOVERS 
OM DA ACK Wile A WwnUL TL ASSURANCE 
SHAT VA] BRIGHT ROUTURE” AWAITS ‘OUR 
WORLD, THIS BOOK IS CORDIALLY 
INSCRIBED 


‘FOR UNTO US A CHILD IS BORN, 

UNTO US A SON IS GIVEN, 

AND THE GOVERNMENT SHALL BE UPON HIS 
SHOULDER! 

AND HIS NAME SHALL BE CALLED WONDERFUL, 

COUNSELOR, THE MIGHTY GOD, 

THE EVERLASTING FATHER, THE PRINCE OF. 
PEACE. 

OF THE INCREASE OF HIS GOVERNMENT 

AND PEACE THERE SHALL BE NO END.” 

Isaiah 9:6. 


CONTENTS 


PACE 

ORR WORD a REECE att geek Ve yy 1 
I 

PEACE ON EARTH IS ASSURED) {2.00000 0.0.. 5 
II 

Jesus, THe Prince oF PEACE ............. 15 
Til 

GovERNMEN'T CENTRALIZED IN JESUS ....... 28 
IV 

Tur Nations DEcLINE THE AUTHORITY OF 

TRDSVEIS USI See Qa 44 
V 

REJECTING JEsus HANDIcAPs THE WorRLD .. 61 
VI 


REJECTING JEsus TENDS TowarD CHAOTIC 


BON TEVIONS iter hele ceo kis alge 75 


CONTENTS 


VII 


Tue Lorp’s ConTROVERSY WITH THE NATIONS 90 


VIIt. 


WorLpD SAFETY Requires Rapica, Action .. 109 


IX 


AMERICA AND THE WorLD Court .......... 128 


x 


A LARGER PROGRAMME FOR THE WORLD’S 


THE Fina, DowNFALL OF ALL INCORRIGIBLE 


NATIONS Oi Ohitts Giec 0 deren ee ee 149 
XIT 

THE RE-CoNsTRUCTION OF SOCIETY ........ 163 
XITI 


FOREWORD 


The Book of The Revelation is God’s chart of 
time. The contents reveal the outstanding events 
between the first century, A. D., and the end of the 
world. 

The Revelation is the people’s own book; it 
should be read and studied by all. A blessing is 
pronounced in the first chapter, and likewise in the 
last, upon all who read and keep “the sayings of 
the prophecy of this book.” They who neglect the 
book forfeit the double benediction. 

The Revelation is hard to understand. This is 
the reason usually given for its neglect. May not 
this be a subterfuge for the indolent mind? ‘Too 
deep to be fathomed? Too high to be climbed? 
Very true; yet the sheep and the lambs can graze 
in the green pastures found in the coves and on the 
foot-hills. 

The reader finds on the first page of The Revela- 
tion a life-like portrait of the glorified Jesus; a mag- 
nificent frontis piece. This gives inspiration to go 
forward. 

Then the blue curtain of heaven is withdrawn by 


I 


FOREWORD 


an unseen hand, and, lo, a view of the eternal 
throne; the splendor is terrible. The throne is sur- 
rounded by holy angels and ransomed saints, all 
happy and active in the presence of God the Father 
and Jesus Christ our Saviour. 

Such a view of Jesus, arrayed in royal robes and 
crowned with authority and dignity, is well worth 
all the time and pains we can give to The Revela- 
tion. 

Jesus is seen as He occupies, influentially and 
officially, the center of the universe. He created 
all; He upholds all; He governs all. 

We are kindly permitted, in the vision, to take 
our stand beside Jesus, and from His view-point 
behold His vast empire. We get a synthetic vision 
of His mighty operations, all progressing through 
much conflict toward the intended ultimate. 

We become impressed with Jesus in His manage- 
ment of our world, as He moves with unfaltering 
step and irresistible power toward His grand objec- 
tive,—the New Heaven and the New Earth. Such a 
grasp of the situation gives the mind a wonderful 
sense of peace and safety and leads to greater con- 
secration and higher service. 

The Revelation clearly shows a violent conflict 
in progress between Jesus and the devil for the con- 

Zz 


FOREWORD 


quest of this world. ‘The conflict deepens as the 
ages pass. 

In the latter part of this book of visions, many 
salient events in the struggle stand out in bold 
relief. One crisis follows another in rapid and 
alarming succession. The interested reader is pro- 
foundly impressed; the heart learns solemn lessons; 
life becomes serious and dignified. 

While we watch the movements of providence as 
described in The Revelation, a military panorama 
of awsome magnificence passes before our eyes. 
The battle of Armageddon distresses the whole 
world; then follows the disturbance of finance and 
commerce among the nations; many powers form 
a strong alliance against Christ and His Church; 
the challenge is accepted with a shout of enthusi- 
asm in confidence of victory; a solemn covenant 
unifies the people of God for the mighty struggle. 
Then the Lord Jesus appears with terrible sudden- 
ness as the Commander of the Christian forces; the 
last of all wars is fought, in which the devil and his 
hosts are overthrown; society, seriously wrecked 
by the war, is re-constructed on the basis of God’s 
will; the millennium is inaugurated, with peace, right- 
eousness and prosperity for the whole world; the 
thousand years fill the world with prosperous nations 

3 


FOREWORD 


and happy people; the devil, released from his 
prison, leads in a post-millennial apostasy; Jesus 
comes in visible form, occupies a great white throne, 
resurrects the dead and passes judgment upon all 
the descendants of Adam; the New Heaven and 
New Earth supersede the old in magnificence and 
splendor far beyond human comprehension. What 
momentous events! Their thunder even now is 
audible, as they speed down upon the world in ter- © 
rific succession with appalling effect. 

We have endeavored to follow God’s own line of 
thought is preparing this little volume. Doubtless 
imperfections are apparent; errors may be discov- 
ered; but we trust the thoughtful reader will over- 
look the faults and grasp the central fact. The 
glorious Lord Jesus on the Throne that rules the 
universe is the prime attraction; the charm of the 
Revelation is the Office that manages the world. 

May the Lord Jesus bless the message presented 
in this little volume, and use it according to His 
own pleasure for the glory of His name, and the 
peace and comfort of His people. 

J. C. McFEETERS. 
Parnassus, Pa., 
April 2, 1926. 


PEACE ON EARTH 


VERSUS ANOTHER WORLD-WAR 


PEACE ON EARTH IS ASSURED 


God hath sworn by the immutability of His 
own word, that the kingdom and the greatness 
of the power under the whole heaven shall be 
given unto Christ; and through whatever con- 
flict and calamity the human family may pass 
to the fulfilment of the prophecy, the night shall 
not outlive the morn. 


—Daniel March, D. D. 


At present the prospect of peace on earth is dark. 
The darkness is like a night overhung with clouds; 
more lightning points than visible stars. 

Many argue that peace in our world is an impos- 
sibility; it cannot be reasonably expected; nor is it 
a thing to be desired. Racial ambition and anti- 
pathy breed war as surely as seed corn yields a har- 

5 


PEACE ON EARTH 


vest. National development and expansion will 
ever produce questions that must be settled by the 
sword. The heroic in the human heart demands the 
battle-field as the arena for its highest expression. 
The natural increase of the world’s inhabitants must 
be kept within bounds by wholesale slaughter. 

After this manner the lovers of war philosophize. 
But they fail to take into account the all controll- 
ing factor of God’s good-will to the human race; 
His grace which is sufficient and efficient to mollify 
all hearts; His Holy Spirit who is able to regener- 
ate the world. The Lord has promised and prophe- 
sied peace; therefore it is coming; our troubled 
earth will not be disappointed. 

The Bible is our authority for believing that a 
golden age awaits this war-ridden world. By con- 
sulting it, and it alone, we can speak with certainty. 
The predictions found in the Word of God afford 
the only reliable information on the subject. The 
Bible, like a telescope, brings to light a future period 
of peace for all nations; a period clear as the sky 
without clouds, bright as the sun at noontide, mild 
and beautiful as a May morning. 

Not by the trend of events as visualized by man 
can we be assured of the future. Not by studying 
the political powers and tracing their plans and 

6 


PEACE ON EARTH IS ASSURED 


charts can we discover what is ahead. To the Book 
of God we turn for light. “To the law and to the 
testimony: if they speak not according to this 
word, it is because there is no light in them.”’* 

Our world, by the will of God, is heir to an inher- 
itance of peace; peace extending through long cen- 
turies; peace without menace by a drawn sword or 
mounted gun in any land; peace without interrup- 
tion for thirty generations at least. The dove of 
peace is on the wing in this direction with the olive 
branch in its mouth, facing adverse winds and sur- 
viving cruel storms; it will not be driven back. 

God accompanied the birth of Jesus, His Son, 
with a special message of peace. A choir of angels, 
temporarily released from service in heaven, that 
they might celebrate Christ’s incarnation on earth, 
hovered over a Judean pasture-field and sang the 
natal song,—“Glory to God in the highest, and on 
earth peace, good will toward men.’’} 

That song was more than an outburst of seraphic 
joy; more than an expression of eager desire and 
ardent hope. It was a prophecy; a prediction of 
universal peace; a certification of tranquility and 
blessedness awaiting all nations. The announce- 


*Isa. 8:20. fLuke 2:14. 
7 


PEACE ON EARTH 


ment by the angels will have sure fulfilment in the 
reign of Jesus, born that night in the town of Beth- 
lehem. 

The prophet Isaiah, illuminated by the Holy 
Spirit, saw that resplendentage afar off in vision. Nor 
did the seer permit what he saw to electrify merely 
his own brain and thrill his own soul. As a skilful 
penman he gave it permanency for the comfort and 
inspiration of future generations. No prediction 
can be found more lucid and definite. Thus he 
wrote,— 

‘And He shall judge among the nations, and shall 
rebuke many peoples: and they shall beat their 
swords into ploughshares, and their spears into 
pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against 
nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” £ 

Peace on earth is hereby assured; international 
peace has been decreed by the highest authority; 
universal peace has been determined by Him who is 
almighty and unchangeable. All nations shall dis- 
arm; their hosts must be mustered out. The 
Supreme Arbiter has thus decided; from His deci- 
sion there is no appeal. 

God’s Word illuminates the future, making this 


fIsa. 2:4. 


PEACE ON EARTH IS ASSURED 


event clear and conspicuous. We may not know 
when the bright morning will dawn; we may not 
see what lies between this and that; but of the fact 
we can entertain no doubt. With grateful hearts 
we can praise the Lord for the predicted peace even 
before the faintest rays streak the horizon. 

Isaiah saw another sight, equally marvelous and 
convincing. He saw the Church of Christ ascend- 
ing to the place of first importance on earth. The 
Holy Spirit descended upon her membership with 
great power; they became distinguished for moral 
and spiritual excellence. Jesus Christ, no longer 
hidden behind artistic and elaborate rituals, was 
gloriously manifest in His Church, in her people and 
her services. The Church offered the people just what 
they needed, and the people appreciated what was 
offered,—a living Saviour, a powerful Gospel, a 
spiritual feast, an increasing life, a triumphant 
joy,—everything needed to enlarge and satiate the 
immortal soul. 

Therefore the multitudes came from all quarters, 
pressing upon her and “flowing” into her, like a 
river overflowing its banks, Her work, in the Lord 
Jesus, had become a grand success; the evangeliza- 
tion of the world had become a reality. The proph- 
et’s eye caught the vision,—in a rapture of gladness 

9 


PEACE ON EARTH 


he exclaimed, ‘And it shall come to pass in the last 
days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house shall be 
established in the top of the mountains, and shall 
be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall 
flow unto it. And many people shall go and say, 
Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the 
Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and He will 
teach us of His ways, and we will walk in His 
paths.” § 

The Church is the power Jesus will use to bring 
peace to our war-wasted world. The Church, in 
the name of tne Son of God, will yet awake to the 
tragedy of our times; she will arise in the might of 
Jesus and cast out of the nations the demon of war. 
The Church, endued and filled with the Holy Spirit, 
will exhibit the riches of the love of God and 
employ the power of Christ to win the world for 
Jesus. The victory will be complete and Jesus shall 
have the glory. 

Intervening events may try men’s souls; strong 
hearts may tremble for fear of the things that are 
coming upon the earth; * war clouds may skirt 
the sky; storms, dark and destructive, may sweep 
the earth, yet peace is pledged; the world some day 


§ Isavi2207u* luke 2r 220, 
10 


PEACE ON EARTH IS ASSURED 


will be tranquil and happy. A bright light arises 
beyond the darkness; the eye of faith beholds the 
radiant morning. The bright vision makes the 
heart strong; optimism abounds when the ultimate 
is known and God is trusted. 

The Lord still holds the reins of government 
notwithstanding appearances to the contrary. The 
universal throne is His; He will never abdicate. 
The indestructible kingdom is His; He will never 
abandon it. All countries are His; all peoples are 
His; all their interests are His. “Thus saith the 
Lord, Behold, all souls are mine; } the silver and 
the gold is mine.” = The Lord has position, power 
and means to accomplish His purpose; therefore 
the peace He has announced will not fail to mate- 
rialize. 

The Golden age will not prove a _ mirage. 
Mankind is on the march to the promised 
land; they shall eater in. The reign of righteous- 
ness wil! become a universal verity; a renovated 
world will become a gloricus realization; the nations 
will 1:01 fail to possess the goodly inheritance. Even 
now in anticipation they might make the welkin 
ring with shouts cf victory. The Holy Spirit will 


+ Ezekiel 18:4. tHag. 2:8. 
Il 


PEACE ON EARTH 


descend upon all lands, like summer showers, filling 
the brain of man with the mind of God, and the 
heart of man with the love of Jesus; and then shail 
we have peace. 

O earth, rejoice thou in Jesus thy King! His 
word and power are pledged to give thee peace. 
The happy time is coming when thy fertile fields 
shall no more be blasted with shot and shell, nor 
thy soil crimsoned with the precious blood of thy 
sons. The day approaches when thy treasures shall 
not be wasted on military preparations, nor thy 
talents spent in cruel warfare. From that day 
henceforth, no more messages from battle-fields to 
pierce the hearts and drench the cheeks at home. 

The ghastly battle-field! What a sight for the 
eyes of men or angels! How horrifying to contem- 
plate! The thought makes the heart sick. What 
mortal anguish when loved ones hear of the battle 
in which sons, brothers, husbands, fathers have 
fallen! 

The battle-field! Strewn with the slaughtered and 
crimson with their blood, what a scene! what a 
horror for loving hearts to ponder! There the vic- 
tims lie; some calm in death; others in the last 
agonies; some groaning and some praying; some 
beholding heaven open to receive their spirits; some 

12 


PEACE ON EARTH IS ASSURED 
without faith in Jesus or knowledge of salvation 
through His sacrifice on the cross. 

Yesterday all were hale and whole; every heart 
throbbed with high hope and defiant valor. Every 
man was animated with the thought of victory; 
then the pleasant vision of home-coming and long 
years of prosperous business and happy life. How 
sudden, how frightful, how lamentable the change! 

Just a few fleeting years have passed since the 
mothers of these men were cherishing their innocent 
babes, gazing with tender love into their smiling 
faces, dreaming of long years and noble manhood, 
thrift and. honor for every one of them. Now the 
hopes are dashed; the hearts are bleeding; the 
homes are darkened; there has been a battle. 

Recently the hearts of young lovers were joyful 
and their faces radiant, anticipating peace, pleasure 
and plenty in their own home, each with the com- 
panion of his choice. How in a moment the 
bright vision has vanished! ‘The hearth-fires will 
never be kindled. The bereaved are left un-mated, 
unwed, unloved by those in whose love they lived 
and laughed, and sang and wept; there has been a 
battle. O the horrors of the battlefield! 

How glad our world will be when the clash of 
arms and the thunder of battles have ceased! Sor- 

13 


PEACE ON EARTH 


row and sighing shall flee away. § God’s Word is 
the guarantee of a golden, peaceful future. The 
world will yet bask in the genial light of the Sun of 
Righteousness and enjoy a thousand years of unin- 
terrupted tranquility under the reign of Jesus 
Christ the Prince of Peace. Then will the former 
sorrows be forgotten because of the exceeding joy. 


§ Isa. 35:10. 
14 


If 
JESUS, THE PRINCE OF PEACE 


Wherefore God also hath highly exalted Him, 
and given Him that name which is above every 
name; that at the name of Jesus, every knee 
should bow, of beings in heaven, and on earth, 
and under the earth; and that every tongue 
should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the 
glory of God the Father. * 

—The Apostle Paul. 


Jesus is called “THE PRINCE OF PEACE.” 
This title is gracefully mentioned by the prophet 
Isaiah. Other terms of honor are added, each 
radiant with uncreated glory. The prophet says, 
“fis name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, 
The Mighty God, The Everlasting Father, The 
Prince of Peace.”+ This Jesus is the Eternal Son 
of God, £ incarnate in the Son of Mary, the 
blessed virgin. § 

How excessive the splendours of the appellations 
by which Jesus, the great Prince, is known! How 
expressive of His true greatness and innate majesty! 


Menile2-O. arisas.O70. «2 Matt. 3-17. § Luke 2:7: 
15 


PEACE? ON HEARTH 


The human mind is dazzled with the brightness of 
the Lord’s Glory; {| in His presence. the angels veil 
their faces. ** What can be said of no other man 
may be said of Jesus,—‘‘Truly this is the Son of 
God.” Let the lips that speak of the Prince of 
Peace be graced with humility; let the pen that 


writes be fed from the heart-fountain. 

The expression, Prince of Peace, suggests per- 
sonal attributes and qualities ranging from the 
lofiest dignity to the lowliest humility. “Prince” 
implies majesty; “peace” implies modesty. In 
Jesus we find sublimeness and lowliness, powerful- 
ness and harmlessness, comprehensiveness and 
minuteness. Yea in this Prince all Divine perfec- 
tions center and all human excellencies unite. 
Goodness to the extreme and greatness supreme, in 
every variation, dwell in Him and glorify His life. 

Exalted, yet friendly; almighty, yet tender; 
inflexible, yet pathetic; unchangeable, yet pliable; 
administering justice, yet abounding in mercy; 
glorious in holiness, yet patient with sinners; fear- 
ful in praises, yet listening to the lisping child. 
What a wonderful combination of rarest traits finds 
expression in the life of Jesus the Prince of Peace! 


qJohn  rira, eelsa. 6:2, 
16 


JESUS, THE PRINCE OF PEACE 


How admirably qualified to take the government 
and rule the world! 

In every princely quality Jesus is incomparable 
and incomprehensible. ‘He is the chiefest among 
ten thousand.” * Chief among ten thousand 
princes, ten thousand counselors, ten thousand cap- 
tains, ten thousand friends, ten thousand lovers. He 
is chiefest among all; rises above all in matchless 
dignity and with graceful poise. ““To whom will ye 
liken me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.” + 

The world, to its own discredit and inconceivable 
loss, fails to recognize Jesus in His unapproachable 
glory; an outstanding character in society; inde- 
pendent of all created beings, yet related to all; 
above them in authority; beyond them in range of 
action; among them in the administration of law; 
caring for them as Superintendent of human affairs. 
This Prince of Peace is “pre-eminent in all things,” t 
and yet the world knows Him not. 

Jesus, in His personality and activities, is often 
mentioned under metaphors drawn from the human 
organism. “His eyes run to and fro through all the 
earth;”§ “His ears are open to the cry of distress;’’] 
“His arm is stretched out against evil;” {fl “His 


fe On@es O00 t isa, 40:25.0 14. Col).t:18s § Zec. 4:10, 
iilvoam~y 22°74. 09 Jer. 21:35. 
17 


PEACE ON EARTH 


voice rends the cedars and makes the forest trem- 
blevacn* 

The operations of His power are frequently noted. 
He watereth the hills; He maketh the grass to grow; 
He toucheth the mountains and they smoke; He 
casts forth His lightnings; He stilleth the noise of 
the seas, and the tumult of the people; He guides 
the stars in their courses, He knoweth their number, 
He calleth them all by their names.* And yet 
the nations are blind to Jesus as their Prince and 
Saviour; they respect not His superlative great- 
ness; nor do they consider His adapability to their 
condition and need. 

The Word of God employs definite language and 
striking symbols to impress the princely personality 
and presence of Jesus upon the public. He is des- 
ignated as “Almighty God,” “The Lord of hosts,” 
‘Shepherd of Israel,” “King of nations,” + “King of 
glory,” “King of kings and Lord of lords.” But the 
world will not listen; the powers will not respect His 
high office. | 

Jesus, the Prince of Peace, is the supreme author- 
ity in the administration of civil affairs on earth. 
He is related to the rulers of every nation as their 


** Psan 2015. a Saledd7 Aue ler aoe 
18 


JESUS, THE PRINCE OF PEACE 


Sovereign. The rulers are intrusted with Christ’s 
subjects, have in charge their material interests and 
are held accountable as their administrators. 

Jesus is “‘a great King over all the earth.” + “He 
is Judge: He putteth down one and setteth up 
another.” § 

The wisdom of men, in their efforts to rule this 
world irrespective of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, has 
ever proved to be pernicious folly. They persist in 
administering government on a material basis,—the 
will of God as a dominant factor is excluded. Mal- 
administration of power is the never failing result. 
Self-interest, corrupt politics, oppressive policies, 
infectious crimes, obstruction and destruction pre- 
vail, until the powers rock in the throes of revolu- 
tion, or are buried in their own ruins. Moral 
miasma infects the atmosphere and sickens society. 
Thus the nations forfeit the Lord’s favor and incur 
His displeasure; they perish in their own moral pu- 
trefaction. Behold Chaldea, Israel, Egypt, Rome 
and many others, whose overthrow is a warning to 
modern nations. 

Let them take heed; the same road today will 
bring the same ruin tomorrow. 


De Psa 47 aes sa. 7537: 
19 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Where conviction of the majesty of God ends, 
there moral insanity begins. When the public 
grows oblivious to the Lord’s presence, clouds of 
darkness gather. When respect for Jesus, the Prince 
of Peace, ceases and His authority makes no impres- 
sion, the day of reckoning cannot be far away. 
Under such circumstances, immorality knows no 
shame, the tide of wickedness rises, the very founda- 
tions of government tremble, the wrath of the Lord 
begins to burn, the life of the nation is in jeopardy. 

Such conditions arising, the Lord Jesus, the 
world’s Supreme Ruler, will not fail to champion 
the waning cause of righteousness. Jesus is quite 
capable. This Lamb of God is also the Lion of the 
tribe of Judah. * When necessity arises, He puts 
on “the garment of vengeance, and is clad with 
zeal as with a cloak. According to their deeds, 
accordingly He will repay.” 

The Prince of Peace can exhibit military fitness 
when a battle is to be fought for the sake of right- 
eousness. Because of His exploits at the Red Sea, 
in the overthrow of Pharaoh and his army, He was 
placed on record as “a man of war.” ¢ 

This mighty Prince has been entrusted with the 





SO REV 5 Sevan Sac ibO shpat Petre one 


20 


JESUS, THE PRINCE OF PEACE 


work of pacifying the world. How stupendous the 
task! Yet he cheerfully accepted it from the Father, 
fully aware of the difficulties involved. Conscious 
of His own infinite power, He faints not; inexhaust- 
ible in personal resources, He is never discouraged. 
All the forces and treasures in the universe are 
officially at His command for this service; therefore 
He never hesitates. Ultimate success without a 
shadow of doubt awaits Him. ‘The nations will 
yet be pacified; good-will among men will yet pre- 
vail throughout the world. “He shall not fail, nor 
be discouraged till He have set judgment in the 
earth.” § 


Since the days of the apostles, Jesus has been 
employed on this gigantic enterprise. The real 
campaign for the conquest of the world began with 


His coronation in heaven. Results thus far appear 
disappointing. Perhaps the world has never been 
more demonized than now; the war spirit among 
men has never been more deceitful, more desperate, 
more diabolical and more universal than at present. 
Hateful passions sway the nations as storms sway 


the trees of the forest. Yet Jesus, the Prince of 


§ Isa. 42:4. 
21 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Peace, holds steadily to His undertaking. He has 
His own plan and hews to the line. 

The Prince of Peace knows how to restore peace 
on the bed-rock of righteousness; peace on funda- 
mental principles; peace that will endure. This is 
His purpose; to this He is committed; in this He 
is making progress. Though his plans require ages 
and involve sacrifices, the result will justify both the 
time and the cost. His thoughts are not our 
thoughts, nor His ways our ways. He removes the 
rude shacks of government erected by man inde- 
pendent of Him; He condemns the secular basis 
of statesmanship constructed by human wisdom. 
Then on the rock foundation of Divine authority 
He proceeds to build a structure that will survive 
the severest tests of time. 

The Prince of Peace astonishes us by saying, “I 
am come to send fire upon the earth; and what will 
I if it be already kindled?” {| Jesus came to send 
fire upon the earth! Fire consumes; a conflagra- 
tion is frightful. And Jesus, while he was yet 
speaking, knew that the flames were already 
started,—flames that would sweep the earth to its 


remotest bounds. 
Jesus saw His teachings enter men’s souls, firing 


q Luke 12:40. 
22 


JESUS, THE PRINCE OF PEACE 


them with zeal, making them earnest, purposeful, 
unconquerable; ready to sacrifice their substance, 
their homes, their lives in the cause of God and 
righteousness. ‘They were stoned, they were sawn 
asunder, were tempted, were slain with the sword; 
they wandered in deserts, and in mountains, and in 
dens and caves of the earth.” * Gospel truth, when 
clearly perceived and duly appreciated, makes life 
strong, love vehement, effort strenuous, hope enthu- 
silastic; self-sacrifice for Jesus becomes a surpass- 
ing joy. 

Such is the fire that Jesus, the Prince of Peace, 
kindles. The world cannot endure the purifying 
flame. Evil doers strenuously oppose the reforma- 
tion and renovation of public life. Such a process 
might cost them their place and power in govern- 
ment; worldly policies and principles would perish 
in the fire; society would be melted and the dross 
removed; the self-interested would be unseated; 
the public spirited would be empowered in their 
stead. 

This accounts for the fierce persecutions fre- 
quently launched against the Church of Christ. 
Desperate and numerous have been the attempts to 


* Heb. 11:37. 


23 


PEACE ON EARTH 


quench the holy flames. Torrents of innocent blood 
have been poured upon the fire that Jesus has kin- 
dled, yet all in vain. Christian heroes never fail 
when martyrs are needed. They are willing to suf- 
fer in a fiery persecution, rather than let the world 
perish in moral putrefaction. 

But we are even more disturbed when the Prince 
of Peace says, “Think not that I am come to send 
peace on earth; I am not come to send peace, but a 
sword.” + How explain such war-like words drop- 
ping from the gracious lips of Jesus. “He came not 
to destroy, but to save?” { The explanation may 
not be difficult if we search in the right direction 
and with an honest heart. The commission Jesus 
received from the Father makes it clear. 

This world, when committed to Jesus for pacifi- 
cation, was in rank rebellion against God. The 
nations were incensed at the enthronement of Jesus 
over them as their King. They disclaimed His 
authority, crying out, in contempt and rage, “We 
will not have this man to reign over us.” § They 
plotted His overthrow; determined His death and 
accomplished their purpose. He was crucified and 
buried. His was a strange and marvelous death; 


* Matt. 10:34. $Luke 9:56. § Luke 19:14. 


24 


JESUS, THE PRINCE OF PEACE 


the tomb could contain Him; but it would not 
retain Him, nor yet detain Him a moment beyond 
His own good pleasure. {| Ere the sun had risen 
twice, the Prince of Peace rose out of the sleep of 
death and clothed Himself with the power of an 
endless life. Again His face was seen among the 
living, His voice was heard, His work was resumed. 

His disciples were quickly advanced to positions 
of power and authority, and were accredited to rep- 
resent Him on earth. They were instructed to offer 
mercy to the guilty world; pardon to the people 
whose hands were red with His precious blood. * 
But the nations spurned His Gospel, scorned His 
terms of peace, ridiculed His good-will. Then spake 
the Father after this manner, “Thou art on the 
throne; they are in Thy power; break them with a 
rod of iron; dash them in pieces like a potter’s ves- 
sel; bring them to terms.” 

The Prince was assigned a stupendous task. Who 
is not amazed at such a work assigned to the peace- 
ful Prince? Does it not seem to be diametrically 
opposed to His commission as the Saviour of the 
world? £ 


But Jesus did not for a moment shirk the service. 


TRON AO pLuker2d 747.0). Psa..2:0. + John).3i17; 


25 


PEACE ON EARTH 


He began with resolute purpose; He has continued 
without interruption; He will go forward till it is 
finished. The tide of battle has ebbed and flowed; 
but the victory, though delayed, has never been 
in doubt. The Lord knows the end from the begin- 
ning; also men of faith live in assurance of the con- 
quest that will bring peace and happiness to the 
world. 

Jesus, after He had risen from the dead, called 
His faithful band together, eleven in number, and 
started His campaign for the conquest of the world.§ 
The truth was their only weapon. They preached 
the Gospel of peace and salvation; they offered a 
free and full pardon; they declared the Lord’s ulti- 
matum. ‘They were resisted by the world powers; 
their offers were despised. The opposition was 
overwhelming. But the servants of Jesus could not 
withdraw; neither could they compromise. They 
could die, but they could not retreat. 

Their appeals of love were met with the sword. { 
The messengers of Jesus fell in their own blood, 
slain by the enemies of the Prince of Peace. Worthy 
successors stepped forward and quickly filled the 
waps. They were unconquerable; their numbers 


§ Luke 24:49. [Acts 12:2. 
26 


JeSUSsi EER INGEOLEPHACE 


rapidly increased; their power became mighty. 

With each successive generation the tide of 
Christianity rose; and it still rises. The Gospel 
hosts, under the banner of Jesus, are marching 
onward. Where the Prince of Peace leads they 
gladly go. They are determined and destined to 
bring the world to Christ. 

To the Prince of Peace be glory, and power, and 
dominion. “His name shall endure forever; His 
name shall be continued as long as the sun: and 
men shall be blessed in Him; all nations shall call 
Him blessed.” * 


we sae 72:17; 
27 


Ill 
GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


Ring and swing, 
Bells of joy! on morning’s wing 
Send the song of praise abroad! 
With a sound of broken chains 
Tell the nations that He reigns, 
Who alone is Lord and God.” 
—Whittier. 


Jesus has reached the zenith of power. There He 
abides, never to retire. He is the mightiest Ruler 
in the Universe. In all things and everywhere He 
has the pre-eminence. 

Thus the Father rewarded His Son for His sac- 
rifice on the cross. Christ’s death on the cross was 
extreme humiliation; His throne at the right hand 
of the Father in heaven is extreme exaltation. ‘He 
humbled Himself and became obedient unto death, 
even the death of the cross: wherefore God also 
hath highly exalted Him.” + 

Jesus, after His resurrection, said unto His disci- 
ples concerning His promotion to the highest seat 


~ COMOtetGnere Pitino 6, 
28 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


of honor, “All authority is given unto Me in heaven 
and on earth.” § 

Paul, getting a glimpse of the sovereignty and 
dominion of Jesus, exclaimed in a spirit of raptu- 
rous delight, ‘““God hath given Him the name that is 
above every name; that at the name of Jesus every 
knee should bow, of beings in heaven, and on earth, 
and under the earth; and that every tongue should 
confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of 
God the Father.” {] 

Jesus in His exaltation incites the mind to high 
thinking. Nothing more fascinating than to follow 
the Lord’s path, as He passeth through the heav- 
ens, * and see Him rewarded with highest honors 
for performing the greatest service. Zacchaeus 
climbed a tree to see Jesus pass by; + will not we 
gird up the loins of our minds and climb the sky to 
get a view of our Lord in His high office and match- 
less majesty? The discovery of Jesus in His unap- 
proachable glory will be an invigorating tonic to our 
sickly souls, a cure for spiritual lethargy. 

A view of the attributes and activities of this 
mighty Sovereign, as He rules the universe and 
redeems the world, is enough to inspire life with 


§ Matt. 28:18. ff Phil. 2:9. *Heb. 4:14. {Luke 19:2. 
29 


PEACE ON EARTH 


noblest motives and cheer the heart with sublimest 
optimism. 

Such excursions and experiences require effort. 
The sluggish soul will never make the journey. 
Human thought must soar to reach the enthroned 
Lord. Drones never soar. And yet the excessive 
strain is well worth while. The intellect is thereby 
expanded and dignified; the heart is purified and 
exalted,—becomes fervent with happiest emotions 
and aflame with the love of God. The mind that 
attempts the flight, and repeats the attempt, is 
exhilarated and glorified. The soul finds its wings, 
scents its native atmosphere, almost loses itself in 
the power and joy of the Holy Spirit by whom it 
ascends. The horizon grows wider, the earth smal- 
ler, heaven larger, nearer and brighter. How rich 
the experience, when able to say after such an effort, 
“YT found Him whom my soul loveth.” How excess- 
ive the joy, when the ascension is a success and the 
soul returns, saying, “I have been with Jesus today 
in the heavenly places.t 

Christ’s exaltation is not merely honorary; He is 
decorated with no empty titles. His seat of power 
is a seat of service. It is official in the noblest 


- pn eo, 


30 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


sense; exacting on Himself to the extreme; benefi- 
cial to others to the highest degree. 

The office which Jesus occupies is essential to the 
peace and security of our world. The work is pro- 
gressive; its intenseness and benificence deepen and 
broaden with the ages, like the flow of a mighty 
river. “Of the increase of His government and peace 
there shall be no end.” § 


The office of our Lord Jesus, being the very cli- 
max of authority, imposes upon Him weightiest 
responsibilities. The administration of law and jus- 
tice, the exercise of discipline and mercy, the distri- 
bution of rewards and the enforcement of penalties, 
throughout God’s vast empire, is merely a part of 
the service accepted with the office. “Thou hast set 
Him over the works of Thy hands.” { 

Jesus occupies the throne not for posing but for 
serving. He is Lord of all that He may serve all. 
He serves all that they may fit into the plan of His 
kingdom to the glory of God His Father.* He 
came into the world, “‘not to be ministered unto, but 
to minister.” + And He ascended up to heaven both 
to render and to receive service. “For the Lamb 
that is on the throne shall feed them, and shall lead 


Sige gs neb.te +7 el) Cor10 341. 1) + MoarkAio-45. 


a1 


PEACE ON EARTH 


them unto living fountains of waters.” + “And His 
servants shall serve Him.” § They who yield to His 
will and accept His service make life a great suc- 
cess; they who assert their independence of Jesus, 
and follow their own heart, end their days in dark- 
ness and disappointment. ‘Walk in the light of 
your fire, and in the sparks ye have kindled. This 
shall ye have of mine hand; ye shall lie down in sor- 
row.” 

All people on earth are subjects of the greatest 
King; “All souls are mine.” * Obedience to Jesus 
wins for them the best He can do and the most He 
can give for their well-being and comfort; disobe- 
dience forfeits all. ‘They would none of My coun- 
sel; they despised all My repoof. Therefore they 
shall eat the fruit of their own way, and be filled 
with their own devices.” + 

It is evident therefore that every created being is 
under the authority of Jesus; no person or power 
can pass beyond His jurisdiction. All are depend- 
ent upon Him for their existence, protection, sup- 
port, guidance in duty and ultimate destiny. All 
are intended for His service,—to receive the service 
He renders, and to render the service He requires. 


t Rev. 7:17. § Rev. 22:3. Isa. s0:11.. * Ezek 164 
+ Prov. 1:30. 
32 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


“All things were created by Him and for Him.” ¢ 

The Father, in the conveyance of all things to 
His Son, made special reference to the nations. He 
left them no possible ground to claim exemption 
from the jurisdiction of Jesus Christ. On this point 
the Word of God is explicit. Nothing in the Bible 
is more emphasized than Christ’s kingship over the 
nations. Their aptness to exclude themselves was 
evidently foreseen and conclusively met. Hence the 
specific clause written into the Father’s grant to 
the Son,—“‘Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the 
nations for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost 
parts of the.earth for Thy possession.’ § 

Jesus has the title deed and sole right to each and 
every nation on the face of the earth. They are His, 
both small and great, by the Father’s decree. No 
leeway is left for the powers to escape from the 
presence of Jesus; none can ever pass beyond the 
dominion of this royal Son of God. ‘Behold the 
nations are as a drop of a bucket; and they are 
counted as the small dust of the balance.” ff 

Thus by a specific act, the powers of government 
have been centralized in the Son by the Father; 
universal authority has been vested in Jesus by a 


’ £Col. 1:16. §Psa. 2:8 Isa. 40 :15. 
33 


PEACE ON EARTH 


decree that cannot be annulled; the administration 
of law has been committed unalterably to His trust. 
He has the oversight and control of all. The final 
appeal is with Him; by His decision they stand or 
fall. ‘God is Judge; He putteth down one and 
setteth up another.” * 

All nations are thus related to Jesus, their 
Supreme Governor. In this relationship they are 
neither graded nor classified. Jesus knows no favor- 
ites; officially all are alike to. Him, though morally 
they may differ. He is no respecter of persons or 
nations. “‘For He hath made of one blood all nations 
of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and 
hath determined their times and their bounds, that 
they should seek the Lord.” + 

The centralization of the government of the world 
has been the dream of the ages. It stirred the 
brain of Nimrod, Nebuchadnezzar, Caesar, Napo- 
leon, Wilhelm and many others. The advance 
thought of our day proposes the World Court as 
a substitute, hoping thereby to have a central office 
sufficiently powerful and effective to promote 
peace and abolish war throughout the world. But 
that august judiciary, as at present founded and 


* Peal 75g er ACTS. 17220: 
34 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


functioned independent of Jesus, has a dark out- 
look. Without Jesus, failure is inevitable. Only 
through the wisdom of Jesus, the Wonderful Coun- 
selor, will the counsel of the world prove sufficient. 
Only by honoring Him as Supreme among the judges 
can the decisions of the court have power to harmo- 
nize the nations and stabilize their governments. 
Only as an institution established in the name of 
Jesus and by His authority, and functioning accord- 
ing to His will, can the World Court expect to 
succeed. Jesus has said, “Apart from Me ye can 
do nothing.” + This maxim is large enough to 
include nations and all their tribunals. 

The desire for a Central Court, an international 
clearing house, is certainly in the right direction. 
The effort to harmonize the powers by deliberation 
rather than by mobilization is most commendable. 
The methods of procedure, however, have hitherto 
prevented success. The human mind has long been 
groping in the dark for the ideal, but the goal has 
not yet been reached. Every effort has been abor- 
tive, resulting in confusion and disappointment. 
Jesus, the Central Power, without whom a nation 

can neither rise nor fall, has been shamefully over- 


tJohn 15:5. 


35 


PEACE ON EARTH 


looked or wilfully excluded. All such attempts in 
ancient times have terminated in catastrophes. 
Will not the same evil course, in this age of Gospel 
light, involve in guilt greater and distress more 
direful than on any previous occasion? ‘The Lord 
Jesus warns the people concerning a future calam- 
ity towering like a mountain above all other 
mountains, the very peak of retributive providence; 
trouble, the like of which has never been, neither 
shall it occur again. He says, ‘For then shall be 
great tribulation, such as was not from the begin- 
ning of the world to this time; no, nor ever shall 
be.” § Surely the nations need Jesus in their 
Supreme Court to guide them through the storm. 

Notwithstanding the best service of the World 
Court, as it ministers to the nations on its present 
basis, the powers feel an irresistible suction toward 
a vortex of destruction. They shudder at the 
thought of another war surpassing in frightfulness 
all that has ever been. War still lurks amid fu- 
ture possibilities. Modern civilization is evidently 
approaching the test that may be its doom. Its 
overthrow may be necessary for the Christian Civ- 
ilization which will bring the Millennium. 


§ Matt. 24:21. 
36 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


The wisdom of the world, daring to set aside the 
wisdom of God, becomes pernicious folly and 
always results in desperate conditions. The civili- 
zation that will survive the coming storm must 
rest upon a solid foundation. That foundation is 
Jesus Christ, the Judge of all judges and Head over 
all courts and powers on earth. The authority of 
Jesus is the bed-rock for civil government; every 
other foundation is sand or muck; the superstruc- 
ture built thereon will sink in the mud, { or perish 
in the storm. * 

The centralization of power in Jesus is essentially 
related to the unifying of the nations. Centraliza- 
tion presages and guarantees unification. They 
are connected as antecedent and consequent; they 
exist as cause and effect. Under the centralized 
power invested in Jesus and duly recognized by the 
nations, they will become united by attraction. They 
will be drawn to the center by a centripetal force 
they cannot resist and by mutual interests they 
will no longer ignore. They will come together 
under His winsome kindness and protecting care, 
as the little chickens gather under the wings of the 
mother hen. § 


1 Psa.9:17.. * Matt. 7:20. :§-Matt. 23 :37.- 


37 


PEACE ON EARTH 


How long ere the nations make the grand discov- 
ery that their unity and concord depend on Jesus, 
the Central Power? How long ere they, with uni- 
versal accord and gladness, proclaim their relation 
to Him as their King and reap the harvest of har- 
mony and happiness? How long ere the men in 
in power recognize the fact that they have no legit- 
imate authority, except such as eminates from the 
throne of Jesus? How long ere they submit to the 
inevitable and admit that they are accountable to 
Jesus, the Potentate of the whole earth? { 

The power centralized in Jesus is beneficent and 
practical to the utmost degree. The authority 
invested in Him is for the best interests of all peo- 
ple. Their greatest good is his great concern. Thus 
He glorifies the Father who commissioned Him to 
rule. “He shall come down like rain upon the mown 
grass; as showers that water the earth.” * 

Jesus is ever ready, from His central position, to 
bless the nations with peace, righteousness and pros- 
perity. He only awaits their assent. Willingness 
on their part is a moral necessity. While averse to 
Jesus, they cannot reach highest success nor enjoy 
His reign. He has resources available and sufficient 





qi Tims6:15))* Psa.72°6: 


38 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


to change the face of the earth and make it like 
Eden. He has showers of blessings to make the 
wilderness blossom as the rose. 

When will the nations open their eyes and behold 
their outstanding privilege in Jesus? When will 
the rulers connect themselves and their governments 
with the infinitude of Divine goodness, and let the 
streams of life and blessedness flow down from the 
Central Power among the people? When they do 
their part, the Lord Jesus will not fail to do His. 
“Then shall the earth yield her increase; and God, 
even our own God, shall bless us.” { The present 
is a time teeming with sublimest possibilities for the 
nations. O that the great men were also wise! O 
that they could read the signs of the times and learn 
lessons from the skies! O that they would hearken 
to the Voice that comes from the Central Throne 
ere it wax louder and louder till the nations tremble 
and the foundations of government shake! ¢ 

Ye mighty men who rule the world, how long till 
ye relate the nations to Jesus Christ by constitu- 
tional law? Why not submit to His authority and 
“obey His orders? Why not give glory to Him to 
whom ye must give account? Why not clear the 


TE SaleO7-Onmo a tLeD.) 12°20, 


39 


PEACE ON EARTH 


way for Him to show the world the kindness of His 
favor, the abundance of His goodness, the blessed- 
ness of His reign? When will ye “prepare the 
way of the Lord, make straight in the desert a high- 
way for our God?” § O that ye would conform to 
the will of Almighty God! He has said, “To Him 
every knee shall bow and every tongue confess.” O 
that ye would recognize Jesus as the embodiment 
of civil authority! That ye would honor Him as 
the center of universal government! That ye would 
cease from worldly policies! They result only in 
vexation and disaster. Subordinate yourselves to 
the reign of Jesus, the “King of nations.” {| Co-ordi- 
nate the powers under the Prince of Peace. Then 
look for results; they will quickly appear. The sur- 
prise will make the world sing for joy. Be loyal to 
the King of kings; put His government to the test. 
Then will the windows of heaven be opened; the 
blessings will come down till the world be filled. 
Every other experiment in civil government has 
failed. Is not the Lord’s method worth a trial? 
Wherefore has it no consideration in national cabi- 
nets and political conferences? Are not the mis- 
takes that have drenched the earth with tears and 
soaked the soil of every land with blood enough to 


8 [sa.040 B00) Were, 1027: 
40 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


startle the world’s leaders? Why will they not 
swing their governments over to the administration 
of Jesus? “Put them in fear, O Lord, that the 
nations may know themselves to be but men.” * 

The familiar epigram, “All just government is 
derived from the consent of the governed,” may well 
be revised in the light of God’s Word. All just 
government must of necessity be derived from the 
Just One, in whom all power is vested. Jesus, the 
Son of God, says,—‘‘All power is given unto Me in 
heaven and on earth.” + The announcement is for 
the whole world. 

Jesus challenges rivals; —‘“To whom will ye liken 
Me, or shall I be equal? saith the Holy One.” ¢ 
The people truly have power, but it is derivative, 
not initiative; subordinate, not absolute. ‘The 
powers that be are ordained of God.” § 

The governed have legitimate power to constitute 
government; yet only in the name of Jesus and sub- 
ject to His authority. {/ They have the right to 
formulate laws, erect offices, elect officers, 
“constitute courts, hold assemblies and admin- 
ister law; but only by the will of Jesus to 
whom they are responsible. Beyond this the rul- 


* Psa. 9:20. + Matt. 28:18. tIsa. 40:25. § Rom, 13:1. 
{ Psa. 20:5. 
4I 


PEACE ON EARTH 


ers cannot go and be guiltless. To arrogate to them- 
selves power that belongs to God is a dangerous 
experiment. ‘The Lord will not give His glory to 
another.” ** His jealousy may long be suppressed, 
yet the heat is there; the consuming flame may 
flash at any moment. Then who will survive? “For 
a fire is kindled in mine anger, and shall burn unto 
the lowest hell, and shall consume the earth with 
her increase, and set on fire the foundations of the 
mountains,” * 

The policy that severs a nation from the Central 
Power is rebellion against the Lord. The safety of 
nations depends absolutely on right relation with 
Jesus. Oblivion is the fate of the wandering star. 
“For the nation and kingdom that will not serve 
Thee shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly 
wasted.” + To filch power from Jesus is cowardice; 
to seize it is insurrection; to use it is open warfare 
against Almighty God. Let the guilty beware of the 
reprisals. 

In the Lord’s plan for the nations, all are equally 
under His supervision and care; none is preferred. 
Likewise all are co-related to each other; none is 
isolated. They constitute one great nationhood, a 





**Tsa. 42:8. * Deut. 32:22. ftIsa. 60:12. 
42 


GOVERNMENT CENTRALIZED IN JESUS 


family of nations, the “E Pluribus Unum” of the 
world. 


IV 
THE NATIONS DECLINE THE AUTHORITY 


OF JESUS 


Be astonished, O ye heavens, at this, and be 
horribly afraid, be ye very desolate, saith the 
Lord. For My people have committed two evils; 
they have forsaken Me, the fountain of living 
waters, and hewed them out cisterns, broken 
cisterns, that can hold no water.£ 

The Prophet Jeremiah. 


The centralization of government in Jesus is a 
certified fact. The Scriptures attest it: “Thou hast 
put all things in subjection under His feet: for in 
that He put all in subjection under Him, 
He left nothing that is not put under 
Him.”§ God the Father proclaims it: “I 
will make Him My Firstborn, higher than the kings 
of the earth.” {| Jesus Himself affirms it: “All 
power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” * 
The insignia on His royal raiment heralds it: “He 


¥ Jer: 2:12. § Heb.’ 2:8. J Psa. 89:27. * Matt 735 18: 


44 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


hath on His vesture and on His thigh a name writ- 
ten, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.”’+ 

Under Jesus the nations have been incorporated, 
by an act of God the Father, into a World Union, 
though they know it not. Under His administration 
they constitute an association of powers, though 
they acknowledge it not. “For the kingdom is 
the Lord’s, and He is the Governor among the 
nations.” £ 

Jesus is the President of the United States of the 
World, the Chief Executive of the all-inclusive “E 
Pluribus Unum.” ‘Who would not fear Thee, O 
King of nations?” § 

In this Union all nations are directly related to 
the Central Power; all are subordinated to the 
Divine Ruler. Under Jesus each has its own place; 
to Him all are accountable. “By Me Kings reign, 
and princes decree justice. By Me princes rule, 
and nobles, even all the judges of the earth.” {/ 

- And yet these fundamental truths are admitted 
by none of the powers; these vital facts are officially 
recognized neither by courts nor cabinets. The 
Universal Governor finds poor favor with kings and 
governments; the nations refuse to adjust them- 


Tuevee toc 1p sas. 22020,.. 9 }er, 10373) PE TOVi. Go ih. 


45 


PEACE ON EARTH 


selves to His requirements; they will not submit to 
His authority. “Wherefore say My people: “We 
are lords; we will come no more unto Thee.” + 


O that they were wise! that they would hearken 
to the ““‘Wonderful Counselor! ” O that they were 
loyal! that they were at peace with the Prince of 
Peace! Then would the nations quickly know the 
fairness of His government and the beneficence of 
His administration. The world would soon be beau- 
tiful, fragrant, fruitful, pleasant as the garden of 
the Lord; safe and desirable as primitive Eden. 
How ready the great King to bless all lands were 
the conditions right! With Him there is no respect 
of persons or nations; neither is there any limit to 
the goodness of His heart or the gifts of His love. 
“In that day the Lord of hosts shall bless, saying, 
Blessed be Egypt My people, and Assyria the work 
of My hands, and Israel Mine inheritance.” t 


The Lord Jesus, in whom all power resides, has 
ordained civil government on a very high plane; the 
benefits accruing to the loyal are above all estima- 
tion. His ideal is above man’s as far as the sky is 
above the fields. § How admirable the Lord’s plan 
for the nations! How practical, how impartial, 





TJ er. 2:3ie tsa 10:26. aN Lo aoe, 3, 
46 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


how beneficent His method! He makes it possible 
for all the powers to enter into peace, righteousness 
and abounding prosperity. ‘The God of the whole 
earth shall He be called.” J 

But in what way can the nations reach the high- 
est attainments, the climax of blessedness? By what 
means? How can they arise out of the present con- 
ditions of darkness? Their distraction borders on 
despair; how can they become tranquil, hopeful, 
successful? This is the problem that out-wits the 
wisest. The restoration of the world baffles the 
wisdom of her statesmen; the greatest find the task 
insuperable. They meet, consult, experiment and— 
fail. They may secure temporary relief, but no 
permanent cure. ‘They have healed the hurt of 
My people slightly, saying Peace, peace, when there 
is no peace.’’* 

How can the world reach normalcy? How can it 
attain to true, solid and permanent prosperity? By 
one expedient alone. Jesus must be accepted by the 
nations as the Universal Ruler and Almighty Sa- 
viour. Without Him they can have no sure hope; 
all other hope is like the light we call ignis fatuus. 
Jesus is the way for the political world, no less than 


{Isak -54:5.'\ .* Jer. 6:14. 
47 


PEACE ON EARTH 


for the individual. + Jesus, being officially related 
to every country by a special act of the Father, has 
pledged the ministry of His providence for their 
support, protection, progress and highest felicity, 
if they be obedient. By loyalty to the reign of 
Jesus they will quickly reach normal conditions; the 
earth will be renewed; Paradise will be restored; the 
world will be safe and happy. § But alas, what a 
chasm lies between the possible blessedness and the 
present wretchedness! 

By a world-wide insurrection against Jesus, and 
a horrible outburst of passion and violence among 
men, the Supreme Government seems to be well nigh 
wrecked. ‘The World Union has been shattered into 
fragments; the pieces are clashing and crashing 
against each other, till our globe presents the direst 
spectacle of conflict, carnage and destruction. 
“They know not, neither will they understand; they 
walk on in darkness; all the foundations of the 
earth are out of course.” f] 

Such is the present condition of the world which 
the Father gave to the Son, that by Him it might 
be pacified and restored. These are the nations that 
Jesus has been attempting for long centuries to 


+ John 14:6.. £1sa. 1:19. § Hosea (2:235 Psa seace 
48 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


reduce and harmonize. Has His work been a fail- 
ure? Has He been out-generaled by the enemy? 
Has He been all this time on the defensive? Has He 
been losing ground and retreating under fire? By 
no means. 

The Lord Jesus has never swerved from His fixed 
purpose; at no time has He found it necessary to 
revise His plan of action. The original chart of 
operations has been followed in the spirit and to the 
letter in every detail. ‘Jesus Christ, the same yes- 
terday, and today, and for ever.” * 

Jesus is never taken by surprise; He keeps the 
end always in view; He presses steadily toward His 
objective; He will reach the goal at the set time. 
Rivalry in His sight is but mockery. “I am God,” 
He exclaims, “and there is none like Me, declaring 
the end from the beginning, and from the ancient 
times the things that are not yet done; My counsel 
shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure.” + 

David, “the sweet Psalmist of Israel,” gives a 
graphic account of the situation. He had a vision 
of the Lord Jesus Christ seated on His throne in 
heaven. In power and dignity He is without a 
rival. From His exalted seat He watches the insane 


*Heb. 13:8. fIsa. 46:9. 


49 


PEACE ON EARTH 


agitation of the nations and their hostile operations. 
The powers are raging; the people are plotting; the 
kings are united in antagonism; the rulers are com- 
bined against the Lord and His annointed Son. 
They are saying, “Let us cut loose from them.” £ 

Jesus looks and laughs. The sight is ridiculous 
enough to make the Eternal God laugh. But that 
Jaugh is an expression of cold derision. Withering 
irony meets their demonstrations of resistance and 
hatred. What cutting rebuke in God’s laugh of 
contempt! Who can endure the Lord’s scom? How 
it blights life! See the builders of Babel. How it 
shrivels a nation! Think of Babylon. How it 
paralyzes opposition! Consider the Assyrian army 
in front of Jerusalem. Man’s most desperate 
designs, his most powerful efforts, are more than 
matched by a word, a look, a gesture from the 
throne of heaven. A glance from the Lord destroyed 
the hosts of the Egyptians.$ But the nations have 
not yet learned this lesson. 

When the Divine countenance changes color, a 
storm of wrath may be expected. If the Lord be 
weary with long-suffering, lo, that day the offend- 
ers perish. One flash from the omniscient eye is suffi- 


TP PSasp i200 pO, Aad. 
50 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


cient to overwhelm the powers that oppose Jesus; 
yea, the mightiest combination of powers that can 
be arrayed against Him. A word from the invisible 
lips may precipitate an avalanche of destruction, 
that will show the nations how impotent are their 
most strenuous efforts in fighting against God. “All 
the nations before Him are as nothing; and they are 
counted by Him less than nothing and vanity.” f 
How vain the plots and plans of the powers when 
Jesus is disregarded and His wisdom set at naught! 
How insane their worst endeavors against Him and 
His kingdom! How foolish their attempt at self- 
determination, and their hopes for success, when 
Jesus is left out of their administration. The elim- 
ination of Jesus from civil government ends in dis- 
appointment and confusion; official imbecility and 
national distraction are sure to follow. ‘The Lord 
bringeth the counsel of the nations to naught; He 
maketh the devices of the people of no effect.” * 


When Jesus accepted power from the Father, He 
was inaugurated into office and honored with the 
gift of universal authority. From thence He 
immediately issued a proclamation of amnesty to 
the guilty world that had shed His blood. He com- 


iSa040-1 7. 10L Sa) 33.710.2 41 EDD. 1:20. 
51 





PEACE ON EARTH 


missioned His ambassadors to enter every country 
and herald the Gospel of pardon and glad tidings 
to all people. ‘To His messengers He said, “Go ye 
therefore and disciple all nations.” ¢ 

Promptly and with unfaltering courage they went 
forth, crying “‘Repent ye therefore, and turn again, 
that your sins may be blotted out, in order that the 
times of refreshing may come from the presence of 
the Lord.” § 

The proclamation was broadcasted, according to 
the ancient method. ‘And the Spirit and the Bride 
say, Come.’’] And they who heard gladly extended 
the invitation to others. Great was the company of 
them who published the terms of mercy. Whoso- 
ever was willing had the privilege of pardon and 
salvation. The nations, as well as individuals, 
were included in the gracious offer, according to 
their nature, capacity and the place they fill in the 
Lord’s purpose. “If that nation, against whom I 
have pronounced, turn from their evil, I will repent 
of the evil I thought to do unto them.” f 

The terms of the King were easy. ‘Two conces- 
sions were required; submission to His authority 
and conformity to His will. The two requirements 


¢ Matt. 28:18. § Acts 3:19. {[ Rev. 22:17. }Jer. 18:8. 
52 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


merge. Loyalty to the Central Power is the King’s 
ultimatum. Jesus, the Sovereign of heaven and 
earth, commands allegiance to His throne. Any 
thing short of obedience, where the Gospel has been 
proclaimed, is treason against the Most High; it 
will meet with drastic treatment. “If ye _ shall 
despise My statutes, I will break the pride of your 
power, and I will make your heaven as iron, and 
your earth as brass; and your strength shall be 
spent in vain.” ¢ 

The terms of the Lord have not proved acceptable 
to the nations. Nineteen centuries have passed and 
the political world is almost solid against acknowl- 
edging their King. Instead of being accredited, He 
is discredited. All these centuries He has pleaded 
with the nations, that they submit to His claims 
and enter into His favor. His appeals have been 
powerful, also pathetic. Yet with indifference that 
may be contemptible in the eyes of the Lord, the 
appeals have been persistently disregarded. The 
voice of His Gospel has been heard in all lands, 
but to this day no nation is wise enough to seek 
after God. The meaning of Divine goodness and 
longsuffering is not understood; the powers are not 





t Lev. 26:15. 
23 


PEACE ON EARTH 


led to repentance; they will not endorse the king- 
ship of Jesus; that is far from their thoughts. 

Often times Jesus has emphasized His entreaties 
with discipline; with great severity He has inflicted 
chastisements. He has smitten the self-determined 
peoples that attempted self-government independ- 
ent of God. He has stricken them with famine, 
floods, pestilence, earthquakes, revolutions and deso- 
lating wars; all to awaken the public conscience 
and save the erring nations. ‘Yet the people turn- 
eth not unto Him that smiteth them, neither do 
they seek the Lord of hosts.” § 

When conditions grow desperate, desperate means 
are employed. When every remedy fails, the nations 
perish in their wilfulness and shame. Alas, how 
many have perished! The earth is littered with 
their ruins. From their desolate mounds a sepul- 
chral voice may be heard, saying, “The nation and 
kingdom that will not serve Thee shall perish; yea, 
those nations shall be utterly wasted.” § 

The Lord is very merciful and gracious to the 
nations, that by love He may win them from delu- 
sion and save them from destruction. He lavishes 
upon them the bounties of His goodness, that they 





§ Isa. 9:13. f[Isa. 60:12. 
54 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


may repent and reap the rich harvests of obedience. 
His kindness never ceases, His beneficence is never 
withheld until patience is exhausted. Yet among 
them all there is none ready to say, “The Lord is 
our Judge; the Lord is our law-giver; the Lord is 
our King; He will save us.” * 

Wherefore are the nations so uniform and reso- 
lute in excluding Jesus from civil government? Why 
do they cling so tenaciously to the independence 
that is independent of Almighty God? What pleas- 
ure or profit have they in the delusion of secular 
statesmanship? Why do they reduce civil govern- 
ment to a monstrosity by eliminating its Divine 
Head? Why do they attempt to rule, oblivious of 
the Most High who will hold them strictly to 
account? ‘‘Put them in fear, O Lord, that the 
nations may know themselves to be but men.” 7 

The experience of Nebuchadnezzar, a celebrated 
king of ancient Babylon, affords a solution to these 
perplexing problems. This king would brook no 
authority above himself. Gazing at the immensity 
and grandeur of his capital city, he became elated 
and exclaimed, “Is not this great Babylon that I 
have built for the house of the kingdom, by the 


69033 °227 re San'O 120, 
55 


PEACE ON EARTH 


might of my power and for the honor of my 
majesty?” + Such over-weening pride can be 
explained only psychologically. The king was suf- 
fering from a species of insanity; his mind was 
unbalanced; a dense delusion had fallen upon his 
soul; he had lost his bearings and was wandering. 

After a time he lifted up his eyes unto heaven and 
recognized the throne of the Lord of glory. This 
brought him to his senses. He then became rational, 
a man of sound mind, a competent and acceptable 
ruler. He then made his confession and left it on 
record for the benefit of future generations. He 
said, “I blessed the Most High, and praised and 
honored Him that liveth for ever and ever, whose 
dominion is an everlasting dominion, and His king- 
dom is from generation to generation. And all the 
inhabitants of the earth are reputed as nothing; and 
He doeth according to His will in the army of 
heaven, and among the inhabitants of the earth; 
and none can stay His hand, or say unto Him, What 
doest Thou?” § 

When the men, who are in power lift up their eyes 
toward God, and see Jesus on the throne, they will 
have a confession to make. When will they entertain 


tDan. 4:30. § Dan. 4:34. 
56 


NATIONS DECLINE. AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


Jesus in their thoughts, honor Him in their public 
service, and give Him glory as the world’s peerless 
Ruler? Then, and not till then, will they be quali- 
fied as dependable statesmen; then, and not before 
then, will their administration be a benediction to 
the nations. When the authority of Jesus becomes 
generally known and publicly honored this will be 
a glad world. ‘When the righteous are in authority 
the people rejoice.” jj 

When officials behold the King in His beauty, and 
bow to His will, hope will arise in the human breast 
and proclaim the dawn of a new day. Every right- 
eous cause will then spring forward with abounding 
energy and high enthusiasm; optimism will banish 
despondency; sorrow and sighing will flee away. 
Mis-rule, with its long list of failures and cruelties, 
will give place to wise government, administered by 
such as are true to God and right with men; the 
officials will be morally and judicially competent. 
“And the kingdom and dominion, and the greatness 
of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall be 
given to the people of the saints of the Most High, 
whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, and all 
dominions shall serve and obey Him.” * 


{ Prov..20.2, «7 Dan. 7:27. 
$7 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Some of the prophets in olden times got glimpses 
of the sovereignty of the Lord Jesus Christ and were 
transported with the vision. They also beheld the 
conditions of blessedness yet awaiting our world. 
In anticipation they lifted up their souls in songs 
of praise. Some of their rhapsodies are still extant, 
every sentence of which is vibrant with sublimest 
emotion. We note a few brief selections: 

“Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises 
to our King, sing praises. For God is King of ali 
the earth; sing praises with understanding.” + 

‘“‘And I heard as it were the voice of a great mul- 
titude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the 
voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for 
the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad 
and give honor to Him.” ¢ 

“And there were great voices in heaven, saying, 
The kingdoms of this world are become the king- 
doms of our Lord and of His Christ; and He shall 
reign for ever and ever.’ §$ 

“And he hath on His vesture and on His thigh a 
name written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF 
LORDS.” { 

The nations in general own relationship to some 


t Rev. 19:6. §Rev. 11:15. { Rev. 19:16.. + Psa.'47:6. 
58 


NATIONS DECLINE AUTHORITY OF JESUS 


supreme being. Gospel lands recognize Almighty 
God. America gives expression to her faith on her 
coin, bearing the inscription, “In God we trust.” 
The oath of office frequently ends with the prayer, 
“So help me God.” Thanksgiving proclamations 
call upon the people to praise Almighty God. The 
eternal God is not forgotten. But in the adminis- 
tration of government, Jesus Christ, His Son, is 
unmentioned; the Light of the world, the Ruler of 
the nations, the Saviour of men is, by lack of official 
action, consigned to political oblivion. 

God the Father has appointed His Son as Media- 
tor to conduct all providence and guide all affairs 
on earth. The Father is behind the Son, giving 
authority and approval; but the Son is the revealer 
of the Father’s favor and the dispenser of His bless- 
ings. Only through Jesus can Almighty God be 
known correctly, honored properly and worshipped 
acceptably. “The Father judgeth no man, but 
hath committed all judgment to the Son: that all 
should honor the Son even as they honor the Father. 
He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not the 
Father which hath sent Him.” * Thus it is evident 
that God Almighty sustains no cordial relationship 


* John 5:22. 
59 


PEACE ON EARTH 


with the nations that disrespect His Son, whose 
name, in honor and authority, is above every name 
in heaven and on earth.t+ 

The nations, by discrediting the authority of 
Jesus, commit a suicidal mistake. Because of this 
error mighty empires have met with utter destruc- 
tion. The dirge of death still lingers on the winds 
that sweep over their ruins. Will not the powers 
that have survived take warning? Persistence in 
the same course will surely bring the same doom. 

Will the nations never learn the solemn lesson? 
Have they no wisdom to escape a fate no less hor- 
rible than that of the ancients? yea, more fright- 
ful, because of the greater light, that aggravates the 
_wickedness and increases the guilt. Utter destruc- 
tion is determined of the Lord against all irrecon- 
cilable powers. “The Lord is King for ever and 
ever; the nations are perished out of His land.” = 

The prophecy of annihilation is so certain of ful- 
filment that it is pronounced as a fact accom- 
plished. ‘Now consider this, ye that forget God, 
lest I tare you in pieces, and there be none to 
deliver.” § 


Philos Ooo ssa slOuns esa, is0cae: 
60 


NV 
REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE 
WORLD 


Christ can redeem the world alone, but it can- 
not become a redeemed world without the help 
of His servants. He needs us to carry into all 
humanity the energies that He brought into the 
midst of mankind by His incarnation and sacri- 
fice. 1 

—Alexander McClaren, D. D. 


The goal of the world, under the reign of Jesus, is 
righteousness that includes harmony and happiness, 
prosperity and progress, stability and strength, 
peace and safety. The administration of the Lord 
is heading in that direction. 

Notwithstanding seeming failure, the operations 
of Jesus are always successful; eventually He will 
reach His grand objective. Though the trend of 
public affairs at present is toward dark clouds, 
beyond the clouds the sun is shining; the world will 
yet bask in the pleasant light of perfect peace. 

The mark which God has set for the world to 

61 


PEACE ON EARTH 


reach is nothing less than the highest perfection 
attainable; the best moral condition and physical 
excellence within reach and reason. Nothing short 
of this can satisfy the gracious heart of God and the 
immortal spirit of man. Jesus has said, “Be ye per- 
fect.” * This command, though short and terse, is 
sufficiently comprehensive to include man in every 
relation; nations are not excepted. 

Absolute perfection in our atmosphere is by no 
means possible; yet relative perfection of a high 
order is obligatory. The highest ideals should be 
in the heart; the people should be on life’s race 
course for the best things; every eye should be on 
the shining goal. Lack of effort is a burning shame; 
unbelief is cowardice; obstruction isa crime. Under 
the leadership of Jesus Christ, earnest action will 
succeed. + The earth can be renovated; mankind 
can be juvenated; wrong conditions can be mini- 
mized almost to elimination. “They shall not hurt 
nor destroy in all My holy mountain: for the earth 
shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the 
waters cover the sea.” + 


The attainments for which the world is exhorted 
to strive are exceeding great; yea, absolutely price- 


x Matt. 5240: cit) OSsehiigei ue sae arr eo, 
62 


REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE WORLD 


less. They embrace righteousness, peace, security, 
religion, education, health and wealth; even all that 
enters into true national prosperity. The possibili- 
ties include everything that will make our globe a 
suitable place for the abode of upright men, virtu- 
ous women and innocent children. This world must 
yet become the delightful habitation of God, where 
He will dwell with His people, supplying all with 
His abundant goodness and protecting all from 
every evil. Every land will resound with His praise. 
Here is an exhortation which has the strength of a 
prediction:. “Make a joyful noise unto God, all ye 
lands; sing forth the honor of His name; make His 
praise glorious.” § 

The Bible gives us numerous hints and glints of 
the delectable conditions awaiting the world when 
the goal is reached. There will be safety, ‘They 
shall not hurt nor destroy;’’{] peace, ‘Nation shall 
not lift up sword against nation;” * righteousness, 
“Thy righteousness shall be as the waves of the 
sea;” + intelligence, ‘“‘All they children shall be 
taught of the Lord;” t£ thriftiness, “Our garners 
shall be filled, affording all manner of store;” §§ 
longevity, “A child shall die a hundred years old;”’f 


mers aaeOG fons Ase IO tsa eed o MT Sa. nS 116, 
te sam 54 134,188 Psa. 144-230. 1). 18a: 65 220. 
63 


PEACE ON EARTH 


consecration, ‘‘Upon the bells of the horses shall be 
written, HOLINESS TO THE LORD.”** 

Many are the encouragements in the Word of 
God, that beckon our sick-hearted world to press 
onward and upward. O earth, lift up thy head and 
take heart! Open thine eyes and behold thy coming 
glory! Be strong and run the race that is set 
before thee, looking unto Jesus, the author and 
finisher of thy faith. The prize is great. 

The world, however, is despairingly handicapped ; 
the race is hopeless; the prize will not be won unless 
conditions be changed. The rejection of Jesus, the 
Central Power, leaves the nations sadly dissociated 
and society badly disintegrated. Harmony is lost 
amid disorder and hatred, rivalry and jealousy; 
strength is wasted in secret antagonism and open 
conflict. Without concord in principle and _har- 
mony in action, the power that could win peace is 
dissipated. Strength for success is not available. 
Under present conditions hope fails; the race is lost 
before it starts. 

How great the handicap! How discouraging the 
outlook! Pause a moment and consider! Millions 
of young men, strong, brilliant, enthusiastic; the 





** Zech. 14:20. 
64 


REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE WORLD 


joy of the home, the brain of the professions, the 
brawn of the industries, the hope of the church, the 
flower of the nation, the glory of society; millions 
of them requisitioned and militarized; and later, 
wasted on battlefields or retired on pensions,—what 
a handicap! Their chief training is for manslaugh- 
ter; their profession, the shedding of blood. This 
mighty force drawn from the peaceful industries 
and useful professions, to be employed in work 
that retards the world and reverses civilization; 
how can the race be won? 

Also while millions of young lives are withdrawn 
from earth’s noble pursuits, billions of material 
wealth are diverted from the world’s utilities to 
enact wholesale barbarities. Money by the thou- 
sands of millions is applied to the maintenance of 
armies, navies and air-fleets; used in inventing and 
preparing instruments of death and means of 
destruction on a scale too extensive and diabolical 
to be mentioned. Preparation is reported even now 
in progress for another debacle, which, if it occur, 
will again drench vast areas with blood and count- 
less cheeks with tears, 

How can the world attain to the true standard of 
moral and physical excellence while held in check 





65 


PEACE ON EARTH 


with such a handicap! Surely some power, not 
innate in man, not found in secular government, is 
needed to shake off the incubus. Conditions must 
be radically changed, or the goal will never be 
reached. Rulers administering government have 
never proved competent; the nations have never 
been at their best; they have ever been confronted 
by dangers that threaten the worst. Shall not Jesus 
be permitted to lead the world’s forces? Otherwise 
will not their demoralization continue? yea, 
increase and work direful havoc? 

The world can attain to righteousness and peace 
only by a master mind; and that must be the Mas- 
ter’s Mind. None other is able to guide the nations 
to the tranquil haven. ‘The most competent mind 
on earth is puerile in presence of such a task. Even 
a super-nation, if there be such, is utterly insuffi- 
cient to take the leadership without Jesus, “who 
has been giver for a witness to the peoples, a leader 
and commander to the peoples.” * Yea, a league of 
nations is not capable; no power in a league to ele- 
vate the world in morals and establish peace on a 
permanent basis without invoking the help of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. Ambition and mistrust lurk in 


ail A Nag Aaya 
66 


REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE WORLD 


the human heart like dynamite; an explosion in 
the league is morally certain if it continue to func- 
tion without God in Jesus Christ. “Know therefore 
and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou 
hast forsaken the Lord thy God, and that My fear 
is not in thee, saith the Lord of hosts.” + 

Jesus is needed at the head of the nations. With- 
out Him at the head of national affairs, recognized 
and honored in His kingship, the worst will event- 
ually happen; friction, disruption, collisions, deso- 
lations, political perdition. ‘The wicked shall be 
turned into- hell, and all the nations that forget 
God.” ‘The powers without Jesus as their leader 
have a dark outlook. Their wilful rejection of Him 
as their Ruler is a suicidal mistake. ‘Away with 
Him,” ¢ cried the people of Judah. The Lord gra- 
ciously permitted the next generation to come for- 
ward, that they might reverse the action of their 
fathers. But they gave it their approval. From 
that time they ceased to be a nation. They handi- 
capped themselves and lost the race. 

But has not Jesus already taken His place at the 
front? Is not the leadership even now in His hand 
by the decree of the Father? Has not universal 


felen cl ioe POON IOs T5, 
67 


PEACE ON EARTH 


government been centralized in Him? Does not 
His authority over the nations extend to their 
remotest bounds? Does not responsibility for 
results rest ultimately with Him? Has He not said: 
“All power is given unto Me in heaven and on 
earth.” § 

True: but the nations have not accepted the 
leadership of Jesus their King. They will not deign — 
to yield submission to His reign. Rather will they 
struggle on, weakened and disabled by the horrible 
handicap. Rather will they lose the race and all 
that it involves, than rally under the banner of Jesus 
and win the prize and all that it includes. The ani- 
mus of the world is against the Omnipotent Ruler. 
This animus produces the handicap. 

But why does not Jesus in His omnipotence use 
compulsion? Why not force the nations into line 
and make them speed up? Why not coerce them 
that they may achieve success? Would not such a 
course be proof of successful leadership? Would 
it not be to their interest and likewise to His credit? 
Are not all things possible with Almighty God? 
These queries seem to carry their own answers; the 
affirmative seems to be the inevitable conclusion. 





§ Matt. 28:18. 
68 


REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE WORLD 


Yet the Lord can never do that which would tarnish 
His moral perfections, nor reverse the laws that 
govern His own life. “I am the Lord, I change 
not.” ff 

At this point we may discover one thing that the 
Lord will never do, if we judge from His uniform 
course of procedure. He will not destroy the free- 
dom of will-in man or nation. Such an act might 
be both a violence to the creature and a violation 
of sovereign power. Liberty of choice and action is 
an essential factor in every responsible being. With- 
out it man would not be man, but a machine or a 
beast; nor would a nation be a nation, but a system 
of machinery or of beastly power. 

Nations are moral persons; therefore are they 
responsible: the Lord deals with them as_ such. 
They are endowed with intellect, conscience and 
volition. They have mind and can formulate laws; 
conscience and can decide moral questions; voli- 
tion and can administer government, adopting a 
basis and a policy of their own choice. They have 
the personal qualities that render them responsible 
to the Most High; they must reckon with God; 
must account even for the handicap. 





{ Mal. 3:6. 
69 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Jesus is deeply interested in the nations; He ever 
works for their highest welfare. He never fails to 
do them the utmost good within the bounds of 
reason. He instructs, counsels, admonishes, chas- 
tises and punishes; all this to their advantage, while 
there is hope. When they persist in wickedness till 
all remedies fail, then He destroys them. But while 
they have being, He never despoils them of free will; 
this badge of responsibility goes with them to the 
grave. ‘The handicap destroys alertness but not 
volition. 

If the nations reach not the goal of noblest and 
happiest well-being, their own perversity is the 
cause. They will not avail themselves of the Lord’s 
leadership and help. They cling to their fateful 
handicap for the poor luxuries it affords. They 
will not recognize the authority of Jesus as the 
Supreme Ruler. They will not honor Him as the 
Central Power, without which the rulers are pow- 
erless to secure peace for this distracted world. By 
their own deliberate choice, or by wilful neglect 
perhaps through obliviousness, they reach the anti- 
climax of greatness even while the climax is pos- 


sible. Their destiny hinges on their acceptance or 


70 


REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE WORLD 


rejection of Jesus, an act of their own free will. * 

Many international conferences have been held 
in recent years. In none of them, however, has 
the authority of King Jesus been mentioned. ‘There 
is no evidence that the sovereignty of the Lord has 
ever been considered in the assemblies where great 
men meet to discuss the world’s supreme interests. 
Neither unitedly nor separately do the powers show 
any concern for the Lord’s kingship. Their para- 
mount questions relate to armies and navies, debts 
and leagues, boundaries and protection. The rela- 
tion of nations to the God of nations has not been 
broached. The men in authority are in accord, say- 
ing by attitude, if not by voice and vote, “We will 
not have this man to reign over us.’ + They hug 
the handicap. 

The rejection of Jesus as King of the world pre- 
vents the nations from being at their best, and clears 
the way for the approach of the worst. The results 
of such treatment of the great Lord of glory are 
too appalling to enumerate or contemplate. The re- 
actionary effects are horrible in the extreme. The 
powers have thereby become alienated, separated, 
belligerent, and even malignant and diabolical in 


a Ostesde ts, oiuLuke 19714. 
71 


PEACE ON EARTH 


their attempt to destroy one another. The world 
has become a cemetery of nations that have per- 
ished in their own blood; nations that became vic- 
tims of the handicap. | 

Thus this ignoble treatment of the Royal Son of 
God involves ruinous losses. The damages sus- 
tained are beyond estimation. The injuries incurred 
and the favors forfeited are inconceivable. Future 
generations will be amazed at the havoc wrought 
through the folly and blindness of their antecedents 
attempting to run the government without the help 
of Jesus. When will the rulers take this to heart? 
When will they lay aside the weight that holds them 
back from success? When will they put away the 
sin by which they are sure to lose the race and 
involve the nations in ruin and disgrace? When 
will they cast off the cruel handicap and bring the 
nations to Jesus amid acclamations of honor and 
victory? | 

Disregard for Jesus in the political world is the 
cause of such appalling disasters, that even the 
heart of God seems to be burdened at the sight and 
sickened with regrets. Over a self-willed nation, 
prostrate in her ruins, He exclaims, “O that thou 
hadst harkened to My commandments? Then had 


72 


REJECTING JESUS HANDICAPS THE WORLD 


thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as 
the waves of the sea.” + 

The Lord Jesus, who alone can understand the 
tragedy of a nation’s downfall, could express His 
feelings, in the presence of such a catastrophe, only 
by a loud exclamation of grief and with flowing 
tears. When Jesus beheld the city of Jerusalem 
rushing into destruction, and the whole nation head- 
ing wrecklessly toward ruin, He wept, crying out, 
“Tf thou hadst known, even thou, at least in this thy 
day, the things that belong to thy peace! but now 
they are hid from thine eyes.” § The blessings for- 
feited and the sufferings involved could find 
expression only in sighs and lamentations arising 
from the greatest heart that ever sympathized with 
our world or sorrowed over the desolation of nations. 

The nations that refuse Jesus, the Prince and 
Saviour, are blind; they cannot see the future. 
Trusting in their own might and wisdom, they are 
facing fearful consequences. They, that reject 
Divine counsel and pursue their own course, are 
actively engaged in self-destruction; they are sow- 
ing the seed that will yield a harvest of death. 

Their fairest prospects will vanish in the dark- 


tIsa. 48:18. § Luke 19:42. 
73 


PEACE ON EARTH 


ness of night; and that night will be without a star, 
and without a morning. f/ And, lo, in their deepest 
sorrow, an accusing voice will never cease to say, 
“Hast thou not procured this unto thyself, in that 
thou hast forsaken the Lord thy God.” * Desola- 
tion and dissolution await the powers that decline 
the authority of Jesus. Without repentance and 
new conditions they cannot survive the avenging 
wrath of God. Long may He wait to be gracious; 
but even Divine patience has an end. © 


PeZephy iA ey ervect7 
74 


VI 
REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD 
CHAOTIC CONDITIONS 


A sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a 
seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters; 
they have forsaken the Lord, they have pro- 
voked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they 
are gone away backward. Why should ye be 
stricken any more? ye will revolt more and 
more: the whole head is sick, and the whole 
heart faint.*—The Prophet Isaiah. 


The rejection of Jesus, the Prince and Saviour of 
nations, reacts with terrific force and frightful 
effect. Sin carries in its own bosom the law of 
vengeance; and the greater the sin, the more dras- 
tic the vengeance. O that the nations were wise and 
would take consequences into account! 

What sin so enormous, what insolence so aggra- 
vating, as the attempt to set Jesus aside and rule in 
His stead! What so sure to kindle the King’s wrath 
as the arrogance that ignores His existence and 


elSacant4s 


PEACE ON EARTH 


assumes His place and claims His rights! Such 
defiance, such contemptible daring, will surely yield 
a harvest of its own kind. Whatsoever a man sow- 
eth, that shall he also reap;+ likewise a nation. 

Such provocation is too presumptuous to be pro- 
longed with safety. It may kindle a fire that will 
not be quenched but with the blood of the offenders. 
When Israel determined to dispense with the Lord’s 
authority and trample on His rights, He gave them 
warning, saying, “I will hide My face from them, I 
will see what their end shall be! for a fire is kindled 
in mine anger, and shall burn unto the lowest hell, 
and shall consume the earth, and set on fire the 
foundations of the mountains.” ~ The Lord has 
not changed His mind or His methods in dealing 
with such cases. 

Thus saith Jesus, the world’s Mighty Ruler, “I 
am the Lord; that is My name; and I will not give 
My glory to another.” § Nebuchadnezzar, king of 
ancient Babylon, in that age the autocrat of the 
world, thought to out-class God in prominence and 
majesty. For his pride and presumption God 
promptly reduced him to the status and fellowship 
of the oxen that were grazing in his fields. Was 





{ Gal. 6:7. ~Deut. 32:22. §Isa. 42:8. § Dan. 5:21. 
76 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


it not the same ambition and haughtiness that 
hurled our civilization into the vortex of the great 
world war, in which the nations raved like madmen? 
And they are not yet cured of their insanity. 

Jesus, viewing the wickedness of the nations that 
reject Him, and the re-actionary effects, pleads with 
infinite tenderness, saying, “Turn you at My 
reproof: behold I will pour out My spirit unto you: 
I will make known My words unto you.” * 


Deploring the suicidal course of the powers He 
had counseled and protected, the Lord breaks forth 
into pathetic lamentations, as if talking with Him- 
self. It seems like a soliloquy when He says, “They 
would none of My counsel: they despised all My 
reproof: therefore they shall eat of the fruit of 
their own ways, and be filled with their own devices. 
For the turning away of the simple shall slay them, 
and the indifference of fools shall destroy them.” 7 

Consider how far the world today is from nor- 
malcy, if you would know how much it costs the 
nations to discard Christ’s authority and pursue 
their own policies. Consider how vast the chasm 
between what the world is, under man’s adminis- 
tration; and what it would be, under the Lord’s 


* Prov. 1223... t Prov: 1330. 
77 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Golden Rule, if you would know what an evil and 
bitter thing it is to forsake the living and true God. 
Consider the jealousies, agitations, aggrievances, 
hostilities and desolations among the nations, if 
you would discover man’s utter inability, yea, his 
imbecility, as he attempts the task of stabilizing the 
powers and restoring peace without Jesus. Consider 
the drift of the world toward another war, a war of 
unprecedented horrors, if present indications be 
reliable, and see if our woe-beleagued world can ever 
have permanent and universal peace without the 
help of God through Jesus Christ. 

The world has need of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, 
as the political leader; without the King of nations 
in the statehouse, the state is on the way to chaotic 
conditions. 

The world is still military in spirit; the nations 
are yet pugnacious. Militarism will not consent to 
be civilized; nor when prepared for action will it 
brook much delay. It is imperial in power and 
imperious at heart, determined to bear sway and 
have its own way. Modification will not hold it in 
check; absolute prohibition must be enforced. The 
world cannot forever display two _ irreconcilable 
flags, the white and the red. The time is coming 
when the one shall be unfurled everywhere and the 

78 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


other found nowhere. Nor is there any doubt which 
will win; the white at last shall hold the field; the 
right shall have the victory. But while the nations 
hesitate and altercate with Jesus their King, they 
are on the way to defeat and chaos. 

Jesus is among the nations, like the sun among 
the planets, the center and source of life, light, 
power and action. If a planet break its relation 
with the sun, if it snap its centripetal bond of union, 
it becomes a wandering star, doomed to isolation, 
frigidity, desolation, darkness and death. It must 
return to its orbit or perish. Thus with the nations. 
To suspend relation with Jesus, the Central Power, 
involves consequences most serious. The initial 
action forebodes disaster. Such a course leads 
away from the source of life, safety, energy and 
wise activity. It is the short route to helplessness 
and hopelessness; the end is perdition. ‘Through 
the wrath of the Lord of hosts is the land darkened, 
and the people shall be as the fuel of the fire; and 
no man shall spare his brother.” § 

The Lord Jesus Christ, the Prince of the nations 
and Saviour of the world, occupies officially and 
influentially the center of the wide-rimmed uni- 


t Mal. 4:2. §Isa. 9:10. 
79 


PEACE ON EARTH 


verse; His power and sovereignty extend to the bor- 
ders of creation. The apostle Paul was honored 
with a vision of the extensiveness of Christ’s domin- 
ion. He labored for language to express what He 
saw. We quote a passage from his pen: ‘For by 
Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and 
that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether they 
be thrones or principalities or powers; all things 
were created by Him and for Him; and He is before 
all things, and by Him all things consist.” J 


The last clause of this quotation is rendered in 
the Revised Version, “All things hold together.” * 
In Jesus the universe constitutes one vast system, 
united, sustained, harmonized and made productive 
by His almighty power. Without Him as the Cen- 
tral Magnate, creation would fall into chaotic con- 
ditions, perhaps disappear in its original nothing- 
ness; the present concord prevailing among the 
spheres would give place to wildest confusion. 

The nations however have suspended, or at least 
refused to admit their relation to Jesus as their 
Moral Governor; hence their wretched state of dis- 
order almost bordering on despair. Having snapped 
the bond that held them in the orbit of duty and 


Tf. Colguri67e. Gokynet7, 
80 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


safety, they dash against each other in ruinous con- 
fusion. Instead of circling gracefully, peacefully, 
joyfully, loyally around the Sun of righteousness, + 
they have chosen their own course and their clash- 
ing never ceases. They diverge and converge with- 
out compass or guide. They revel in conflict and 
collision. One after another they perish in their 
own blood. “The kings of the earth set themselves, 
and the rulers take counsel together against the 
Lord and against His Anointed, saying, Let us break 
their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from 
Use 

With no controlling force stronger than interna- 
tional law, and that as weak as “‘a scrap of paper,” 
the nations have become wandering stars. Their 
erratic movements often pass beyond the line of 
safety; frequently they cross each other’s path. 
When this occurs, lo, a crash, a horror, a war. 

Human prudence is not sufficient to prevent war; 
jurisprudence thus far has failed to keep the peace. 
The political bodies clash and are shattered. Nor 
can the shock of battle cease, or the horrors of war 
yield to the pleadings of peace, till the nations 
assemble around Jesus as the Center of the Uni- 


Penraie Aiee ih Sas 22 22, 
81 


PEACE ON EARTH 


verse, and honor Him as the Sovereign of creation. 
He is the Sun; they are the planets. 

Departure from the right course causes collisions; 
collisions occasion wars; war revels in destruction; 
destruction glories in chaos. The infernal progress 
can be checked and reversed only by a master mind 
in control; and that must be the Master’s Mind. § 

Without Jesus at the head of the nations, war is 
a moral certainty; yea, the overthrow of govern- 
ment in the course of time is beyond peradventure. 
Behold the heaps that mark the graves of nations! 
They flourished in God’s beneficent providence; 
they perished through an inflated sense of power and 
haughty independence of the Lord. “And the lofty 
looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness 
of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone 
shall be exalted in that day.” J 

The only preventative of national decay and dis- 
solution, not yet tested, is the recognition of the 
Lord Jesus and loyal submission to His will. The 
world is sick almost unto death. Statesmen have 
tried every other remedy within their knowledge. 
Yet their patient is not getting better; rather grow- 
ing worse. 


S[sav docile asaeeerT, 
82 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


O wherefore will they not give the Divine pre- 
scription a fair- trial; without it the nations will 
surely die. Without it war cannot be abolished; 
chaotic conditions cannot be prevented. A cele- 
brated American general, being reminded that he 
was not conducting his campaign according to the 
rules of civilized war, retorted, “War is not civilized; 
war is hell.”” While the devil is loose, he will do his 
best and worst to consolidate our world with his own 
region. While he is at liberty and in power, how 
can the nations be at peace? War is inevitable. 

The nations are heading toward political chaos; 
they must face about or become the sport of 
demons. Perhaps they are that just now. They 
are sealing their own doom by neglecting the remedy 
God has prescribed and provided. The continued 
rejection of Jesus prognosticates extinction. ‘For 
the kingdom and nation that will not serve Thee 
shall perish; yea, those nations shall be utterly 
wasted.” * 

Israel affords an apt illustration of this alarming 
truth. That nation was greatly favored of the Lord 
above other nations in their day. He gave them 
laws and institutions suited to their times and con- 


* Isa. 60:12. 


83 


PEACE ON EARTH 


ditions, thus fitting them for their mission in the 
world. Their civic constitution was the Decalogue; 
their primitive legislation was merely an expansion 
of their constitution. None were eligible to office 
except those who feared God and loved righteous- 
ness. f 

While the Lord was duly honored and the govern- 
ment faithfully administered, the nation flourished. 
When the true standard of national life was forsaken 
and God forgotten, Israel retrograded. Fidelity to 
the Lord marked success and happiness at high 
tide; departure from the Lord brought low tide. 
They rose and fell according to the degree of their 
loyalty to the Lord. 

While Israel kept faith with God and moved in 
the orbit of righteousness, the nation was immune 
to injury and defeat. War was often met on the 
way, but the enemy was easily brushed aside. All 
attacks were like the waves breaking against the 
rocks. Israel was unharmed by the mightiest foes. 
And this should have been, and could have been, 
and would have been, through all coming time, had 
the nation remained true to God. ‘The haters of 
the Lord should have submitted themselves unto 


TiO ee cels 
84 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


Him; but their time should have endured for ever.’’t 

But Israel was not steadfast. The nation often 
relaxed; violated her constitution; interlarded her 
laws with vain devices; adopted worldly policies 
of government. Finally she disowned her Lord and 
repudiated all obligations to Him. With bitter 
hatred the people shrieked, “Away with Him; we 
have no king but Ceasar.” § They renounced the 
authority of Jesus the Son of God and endorsed the 
sovereignty of a mere man instead. Henceforth 
that nation, having cut loose from the Central Sun, 
became a wandering star, moving helplessly among 
hostile powers, harassed and embarrassed in every 
part of the habitable world. 

Israel had a checkered career from the first revolt 
against the Lord till the fateful day of His rejec- 
tion. Rebellion and repentance alternated. They 
sinned and they suffered; they cried to God and 
were delivered. Now the people are strong and tri- 
umphant; again they are diminished and humili- 
ated. Their treason against the Most High often 
brought them as a nation to the verge of annihila- 
tion. In war they frequently suffered defeat and 
loss of independence. Swerving from the path of 


t Psa. 81:15. § John 19:15. 
85 


PEACE ON EARTH 


rectitude, they were swayed back by the sword that 
drenched their fields with their own blood. The 
remedy was severe because nothing else was effec- 
tive. ‘He gave His people also unto the sword, and 
was wroth with His inheritance.” { 

The corrective wars increased in violence as the 
offences against the Lord were repeated. Their case 
became desperate when their bearing toward God 
became daring and defiant. The country was for- 
aged; the cities were pillaged; the armies were 
slaughtered; the people were deported; independ- 
ence was lost; the nation was reduced to vassalage. 
And yet however frequent their revolts against the 
Lord, or frightful the distress of the people, the cry 
of grief quickly won the heart of God and brought 
deliverance. “Yea, many a time turned He His 
anger away, and did not stir up all His wrath.” * 
Yet war, like medicine, in the process of time may 
lose its remedial effects. God’s warnings may not be 
taken seriously till they become judgments and ter- 
minate in execution. Then it is too late. Onward 
the nation plunged. Irrevocable ruin became inev- 
itable. The gulf of destruction yawned for the 
approaching victim; the nation drifted beyond hope. 


1:Psa:78:02) % Psa..75 -38. 
86 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


The Lord can be provoked to let the transgressor 
pass the dead line and commit the unpardonable 
sin. At this point He declares with awful delibera- 
tion and determination, ‘““Though Moses and Samuel 
stood before Me, yet My mind could not be toward 
this people; cast them out of My sight, and let them 
go forth.” 

Forty years after the infamous rejection of 
Jesus, Jerusalem was surrounded by a powerful 
Roman army. The merciful Lord still hesitated to 
inflict the death penalty; waited a full generation. 
Will the children disown, or will they endorse the 
deed of their fathers? The life of the nation depends 
on their decision. It received their endorsement; 
then their doom was sealed. ‘The city suffered a 
protracted siege. The defenders were weakened by 
factional strife; law and discipline were swept away 
by jealousy and unbridled passion. Treachery, 
anarchy and despair prevailed. ‘The slaughter was 
incredible; more than a million lives were sacri- 
ficed. The holocaust indicated the magnitude of 
the guilt. Pandemonium reigned. ‘The city was 
reduced to ruinous heaps; desolation brooded over 
the land; the war ended in chaos. The rejection of 





Teri oetsea Onn 10 +15. 
87 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Jesus, the King and Saviour of nations, when per- 
sisted in to the bitter end, can terminate only in 
political perdition. “The wicked are like the troub- 
led sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up 
mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to 
the wicked.” § 

Without the help of Jesus, earth’s merciful Sov- 
ereign, the nations will continue to be the victims 
of war. Deliverance can come from no other source. 
But how can they expect help while they are dis- 
loyal? ‘There can be no peace till the nations get 
right with God. This is the preliminary step. 

At the present moment, no permanent peace is in 
sight. The powers are heading toward worse con- 
ditions. The blind are leading the blind; the ditch 
that awaits their coming is wide and deep. The 
Lord Jesus, and none but He, is able to prevent the 
fatal plunge. 

Wherefore are the world’s rulers so obstinate in 
pursuing their insane and ruinous policy? Do they 
not hear the appealing voice, saying, “I, even I, am 
the Lord; and beside Me there is no Saviour.” 

Salvation cometh from the Lord alone. Jesus, 
and none but He, can cast out the war demon. He, 


§ Isa. 57:20. 


REJECTING JESUS TENDS TOWARD CHAOS 


and none other, can restore sanity and tranquility 
to the afflicted powers. He, and He only, can pacify 
the world and bring good will and happiness to all 
people. When will the nations apply to Jesus for 
relief? When will they accept His leadership, that 
they may escape the doom of the lost? Is it not 
high time that they listen to His earnest and 
pathetic voice, saying, ‘Follow Me!” 


89 


Vil 
THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH THE 
NATIONS 


The flood, the destruction of Sodom and 
Gomorrah, the plagues of Egypt and other great 
catastrophes happened because men were stub- 


born or men were foul. 
—George A. Smith, M. A. 


When Pilate sat in judgment on the case of Jesus, 
he was awed with the innate majesty and stainless 
innocence of his Prisoner. Once and again he sought 
to release Him. The accusers were inexorable. 
Perplexed beyond measure the judge exclaimed, 
“What shall I then do with Jesus?” * He might well 
have added, “And what will Jesus do with me?” 

The nations are not sufficiently interested in Jesus 
to consider any action whatever in His case. Their 
indifference is mysterious and lamentable. Their 
omission speaks louder than words, saying “What 
have we to do with Thee, Thou Son of God.”} All 


mM att veri onset atts oo 20; 
90 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


relationship to Jesus, the world’s Ruler, is discoun- 
tenanced, if not actually renounced. 

When Jesus meets the challenge, what will He do 
with the nations? ‘Their treatment of Him antici- 
pates, yea, rather necessitates, a consequential 
treatment of them. He is their King, though they 
regard not His authority. He is “the Governor 
among the nations,” + though they accord Him 
neither part nor place in the administration of gov- 
ernment. How unwise and offensive toward Him 
their attitude and conduct! What will Jesus do in 
return? The law of compensation never fails; an 
equivalent will surely be awarded. ‘The Lord hath 
also a controversy with Judah, and will punish Jacob 
according to His ways; according to his doings will 
He recompense him.” § 

The Judge of all the earth will do right. The 
Lord is meek, slow to anger, waits to be gracious, 
delights in mercy, loves to show favor. Yet let the 
nations beware of mistaking His delay for indiffer- 
ence. Inaction with the Lord is no sign of uncon- 
cern or inability. His great heart cherishes kindli- 
est motives. He gives the nations time to consider, 
to decide, to take action and escape. If they be 





+ Psa, 22-28, § Hosea 12:2. 


91 fr. 


X y 
4 
* 
- 
“See a 


PEACE ON EARTH 


saved, it will be of their own choice; if destroyed, 
they must bear the blame. - Jesus will not deprive 
them of the power of volition, even though they 
choose to wander and perish. “And if it seem evil 
unto you to serve the Lord, choose you this day 
whom ye will serve.” 

Can it be possible that the Lord will always bear 
with the impertinence and perversity of the world 
powers? Scarcely possible. He has too much at 
stake. The ship of state, freighted with nearly two 
billion souls, and a new cargo every generation, is 
of utmost importance to Him. How great His inter- 
est in the peoples of the whole world! They are all 
His own. “‘He hath made of one blood all nations.’’* 
He lays claim to every man, woman and child. “All 
souls are Mine,” He exclaims. + 

The rulers are responsible to Jesus for the wel- 
fare of the world’s vast population. Through His 
providence, the rulers are elevated to positions of 
power and trust; to Jesus, the Supreme Ruler, they 
must give account of themselves in the use or abuse 
of their authority. ‘Promotion cometh neither from 
the east, nor from the west, nor from the south. But 
God is Judge: He putteth down one and setteth up 
another.” =. 





| Josh. 24:15. * Acts 17:26. f Ezek. 18:4. Psa. 75:6. 
92 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


Civil government, as erected by the world’s 
authorities, is well nigh Christless. In its founda- 
tion and administration it is universally secular; 
rises no higher at best than humanitarian princi- 
ples, and at its worst is almost satanic. The Lord 
Jesus is accorded neither place nor voice in the 
jurisdiction of the world. And this is that same 
Jesus, “that hath on His vesture and on His thigh a 
name written, “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF 
LORDS.” § 


The administration of law on the secular basis 
has ever proved a baneful error. Secular govern- 
ment is a fountain that floods the world with brack- 
ish waters and bitter consequences. Jesus is thereby 
dishonored; the people are wronged; the rulers are 
confounded; the nations are blighted and imperiled; 
their very existence is a mere matter of time, unless 
they face about and change their course. Their 
salvation absolutely depends on their acceptance of 
Jesus as their Prince and Saviour. ‘Be wise now 
therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of 
the earth. Serve the Lord with fear and rejoice 


with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry 


§ Rev. 19:16. 
| 93 


PEACE ON EARTH 


and ye perish from the way, when His wrath is 
kindled but a little.” 

The nations, by acting independent of Jesus and 
persisting in self-determination, always run amuck. 
They never rise higher than the possibility of 
strikes, riots, revolts, battle-fields, catastrophes, 
world tragedies. ‘They are in constant conflict with 
the Lord and His impregnable government of right- 
eousness. Their troubles never cease. He counsels, 
pleads, remonstrates, threatens, corrects with judi- 
cial severity and painful providences. He flashes 
His lightnings of wrath over the perilous road they 
travel, saying in thunder tones, ‘Turn ye, turn ye, 
from your evil way; for why will ye die?” * The 
Lord’s voice is heard in His Word; His lightnings 
are seen in His providence. 

If the arguments of mercy be not sufficient to win 
the nations, then He releases the forces of judg- 
ment. ‘The nations may become so perverse and 
corrupt under immoral and incompetent rulers, that 
discipline will utterly fail and destruction will 
become a moral necessity. Remember the doom of 
Sodom and Gomorrah. + When God has a contro- 


T Psavj2tioo o* zek 133541, + Gen. 19:13. 


04 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


versy with a nation, it will end either in conversion 
or in destruction. 

When Israel rejected the Lord and trusted in 
their own wisdom and might, He remonstrated in 
language they could not misunderstand; it was 
forceful and pointed. Disaster followed disaster. 
Sedition, invasion, famine, pestilence and other 
destructive forces swept the land and decimated the 
people. Their national independence was often 
imperiled and their country impoverished. Without 
the favor of God they quickly became helpless and 
hopeless. ‘Their rulers made them to sin, and their 
sins made them to suffer. Every adversity was a 
new argument by which they might be reclaimed. 

In their plight they prayed and they were rescued. 
Many times the Lord turned back the tide of dis- 
- tress; by His merciful intervention, peace and safety 
were often restored. Then the rulers could find 
time to count the cost of attempting to run the 
government aloof from God. Gazing at the devas- 
tated fields and desolated cities, they might hear a 
voice upbraiding them saying, “Hast thou not pro- 
cured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken 
the Lord thy God.’ § Thus were they reproved by 


Peis salt.) Soyer? 2:17: 
95 


PEACE ON EARTH 


the prophets and reproached by their own con- 
science. The Lord’s logic was painfully emphatic: 
it had effect. 

And yet when peace returned, they soon forgot. 
When prosperity came they spurned His counsel 
and obstinately pursued their own devices. They 
still preferred the down-grade, denying the Lord 
and defying His warnings, corrupting themselves 
and leaving their children a heritage of woe. 
Against such ingratitude and folly the Divine Sov- 
ereign renews His protest, saying, “Shall I not visit 
for these things, saith the Lord; and shall not My 
soul be avenged on such a nation as this.” ] 

But what can curb a nation on the downward 
grade? The passions of the carnal heart are 
unleashed; gratification is substituted for morality; 
what pleases the masses becomes the standard of 
conduct. ‘The delicious infatuation of the people, 
the tremendous momentum of a declining nation, 
the increasing velocity of a corrupt government, 
the growing laxity and incompetency of rulers,—all 
tend to excite and incite the public to a dangerous 
degree of impulsive activity. The political machine 
gets beyond control; a crash is inevitable; it cannot 


q Jer. 9:9. 
96 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


be prevented. The downward rush means ruin 
ahead. 

Thus Israel, undaunted by painful corrections 
and crushing judgments, speeds into greater wicked- 
ness. The Lord’s controversy may soon cease; His 
next move may be abandonment. The Lord Him- 
self seems amazed at such insensibility and stub- 
bornness, and exclaims, “Ah, sinful nation, a peo- 
ple laden with iniquity, a seed of evil doers, children 
that are corrupters; they have forsaken the Lord, 
they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto 
anger, they have gone away backward. Why should 
ye be stricken any more? ye will revolt more and 
more.” * 

And yet the Lord would not cease His contro- 
versy; from the contention He would not withdraw. 
May we be permitted to say with reverence, He 
could not. The nation having widened the breach 
must either repent or be reduced. The Lord sends 
His prophet with another warning. Pointing to the 
scenes of carnage and pillage, he exclaims, ‘For all 
this His anger is not turned away; but His hand is 
stretched out still.”” + The authorities are informed 


TisarctAs etisa, © 212. 
97 


PEACE’ ON EARTH 


that they are in the thick of a desperate fight against 
Almighty God. 

The outstretched hand however is scorned. The 
obstinate nation repents not, and the righteous 
Judge relents not. The battle is renewed. 

The punishment of treason against God must 
continue till His moral government be vindicated. 
The strokes grow heavier and more frequent. The 
nation is stunned, exasperated, frenzied, approaches 
insanity. Yet the Lord proceeds with His awful 
work of redemption by judgment. Mercy had failed; 
judgment is on trial. If judgment fail in the work 
of recovery, the government of Israel will perish 
from the face of the earth. 

Once more the Lord in His controversy steps 
between the nation and perdition; He gives another 
warning, it sounds like the knell of doom. He says, 
“Tf ye will not be reformed by Me by these things, 
but will walk contrary to Me; then will I also walk 
contrary to you, and will punish you yet seven times 
for your sins.” = The last ray of hope was fast 
fading from their sky. 

Both mercy and judgment can be exhausted as 
remedial forces, while the people still hold to their 


tLev. 26:23. 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


own way. When this occurs, the Lord steps aside, 
permitting the suicidal nation to pass on to her 
doom. And yet as if unable to bear the sight of 
such a catastrophe, or behold the horrors into which 
the people are rushing, He calls after them with a 
lamentable voice, “How shall I give thee up, 
Ephraim? How shall I deliver thee, Israel? How 
shall I make thee as Admah? How shall I set thee 
as Zeboim? My heart is turned within Me; My 
repentings are kindled together” § 

The rulers had forsaken the Lord; they had 
sown the seed of self-determination. Therefore 
they and the people must reap the harvest of self- 
destruction. Self-determination and _ self-destruc- 
tion, in effect, are synonyms, when insubordination 
to God is included. 

How quickly the nation was on the rapids of 
ruinous events when the Lord withdrew His merci- 
ful restraints. Clutched by the relentless waves of 
disaster, the people were decimated; the government 
was overthrown; the survivors were scattered to 
the ends of the earth; Israel was reckoned no more 
among the nations. Their nationality ceased; nor 
can it be restored until they “look upon Him whom 


§ Hos. 11:8. 


PEACE ON EARTH 


they have pierced and mourn for their sins.” {[ 

The overthrow of Israel is God’s warning to other 
governments. - If they pursue the same course, they 
will assuredly meet the same fate. With emphasis 
that should make the mightiest tremble, the Lord 
speaks, saying to each and every one of them, 
“Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy 
backslidings shall reprove thee; know therefore 
and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou 
hast forsaken the Lord thy God, and that My fear is 
not in thee, saith the Lord God of hosts.” * 


Perhaps the Lord’s controversy with the nations 
was never more tense than now. He is using the 
language of events that stun the world. He is speak- 
ing to kings and judges in wrath; He is vexing them 
in His sore displeasure. + ‘The overthrow of modern 
nations, the destruction of empires that recently 
flourished in power and pride, fill thoughtful hearts 
with alarm. ‘The dread catastrophes, that follow 
each other with astounding rapidity, awaken serious 
apprehension of others yet to come. 

The disastrous operations of providence almost 
stagger our faith; our confidence in a Supreme 
Ruler well nigh fails. How can these things be? 


{ Zeci12*10. "per. 2710.08 bsasee -& 


T0o 


‘ ‘ 
OO 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


If there is a living and true God, where is He? 
If He be good, is He also Almighty, able to do all 
His pleasure? Then wherefore does He permit such 
direful distresses? Can He be good and take part 
in the destructive events that are ever occuring? If 
He be interested in the world, why does He permit 
the horrors that shock and crush mankind? How 
can the Omnipotent Ruler have any satisfaction in 
the collapse of nations, the ruin of cities, the deso- 
lation of homes and the anguish of broken hearts? 

Or may it be possible that He is impotent rather 
than omnipotent, helpless rather than all-sufficient? 
Is He without power to control the forces of nature 
and the armies of men? The brain swims in a sea 
of perplexity; yea, sinks beneath the briny waters. 
Yet let this one principle be fixed immovably in the 
mind,—The Supreme Judge is altogether righteous; 
He can never do wrong. 

A prominent ruler in Israel, surveying the deso- 
lation that had befallen his country, looked up to 
God, exclaiming, “Thou art just in all that is 
brought upon us; for Thou hast done right; but we 
have done wickedly.” + 
_ Jesus is “the light of the world.” ‘This is a day 





Neh. 9:33. 


Io!I 


PEACE ON EARTH 


of Gospel light throughout the earth. The name of 
Jesus has been published in every land; the Gospel 
has been preached in all languages; the true light 
shines around the globe. The world has become one 
neighborhood; the nations are inter-related and 
closely associated; all are more or less favored with 
the good news and glad tidings of salvation through 
Jesus Christ. And according to the light so are the 
privileges and responsibilities. Sin against knowl- 
edge is highly aggravating; the guilt becomes enor- 
mous. 

The nations have the knowledge of Jesus and are 
sinning against light. The sin against light 
approaches the unpardonable sin.§ Without 
repentance and reformation, worse conditions will 
yet be reached; greater guilt will be incurred; the 
extreme penalty will be earned and paid; destruc- 
tion alone can meet the case. ‘Thou hast forsaken 
Me, saith the Lord; thou art gone backward; there- 
fore will I stretch out My hand against thee and 
destroy thee; I am weary with repenting.” 

The Lord willingly shares in the responsibility for 
all destructive events; His connection with them 
and identity in them He never shields. By His 





§ Heb. 10:26. ff Jer. 15:6. 


102 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


judgments He overthrows nations; by His provi- 
dences myriads of lives are lost; yet He never 
apologizes; moral necessity lays the heavy burden 
upon the righteous Judge. He is under obligation 
by the law of His own being. Otherwise His essen- 
tial attributes would fail; He would cease to be 
righteous; cease to be God. Earth would soon 
become pandemonium; cosmos would quickly 
return to chaos. ‘But unto the Son He saith, Thy 
throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of 
righteousness is the scepter of Thy kingdom.” * 
The Eternal God thus addresses His Son Jesus 
Christ. 

When the human race, in the days of Noah, 
reveled in filth and violence till the world had 
become intolerably foul and cruel, the occasion 
required nothing short of a devastating deluge. And 
yet the Lord was longsuffering. He hesitated to 
execute such dreadful judgment. He gave warning 
and waited patiently. He held back the overflow- 
ing waters a hundred and twenty years after the 
announcement. But the lewdness and lawlessness, 
rising like a tide, would not be checked. The Lord 
forewarned, saying, ‘‘Behold, I, even I, do bring a 





* Heb. 1:8. 





103 


PEACE ON EARTH 


flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, 
wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; 
and every thing that is in the earth shall die.” 7 
Noah, the prophet and preacher, could not fail to 
speak in terms of God’s mercy, also in the tones of 
His wrath. The warning was scorned; the mercy 
was refused; the wrath was defied. A generation of 
stalwarts, strong, wicked and cruel, recklessly faced 
the fiood and perished therein. All flesh that moved 
upon the earth, except one ship load, died. Yet for 
all this the Lord accepts responsibility. That His 
identity as the potential author might not be mis- 
taken, He said with great emphasis, “Behold, I, 
even I, do bring a flood.” + 

Wickedness was the procuring cause; justice was 
the punitive cause; the flood was the instrumental 
cause; the Lord was the executive cause. Almighty 
God admits His part in the loss of life and property 
in the world-wide deluge; likewise in all destructive 
providences that befall mankind. He does His work 
with a strong hand and never winces under the fire 
of criticism; He scorns the critic. 

Jesus revealed Himself to the apostle John on 
Patmos as a military officer, mounted on a white 


+ Gen. 6:17. 


104 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


horse, ¢ dashing over the battlefield, doing fearful 
execution upon the enemy. The seer described the 
scene, saying, “And out of His mouth goeth a sharp 
sword, that with it He should smite the nations; 
and He shall rule them with a rod of iron; and He 
treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath 
of Almighty God. And He hath on His vesture and 
on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS 
AND LORD OF LORDS.”§ 

Away with the sickly, silly notion, that Jesus is 
too tenderhearted to punish impenitent sinners! 
Vengeance can be prevented only by faith in His 
atoning sacrifice on the cross. He is as little 
annoyed with the carping critics as is the sun with 
the chirping crickets. 

The frightful retributions now falling upon the 
earth are of the Lord; His strongest arguments of 
mercy; His passionate appeals of love; all to 
awaken the world to a sense of approaching danger. 
He is pleading with the nations, that they may yield 
to Him and be saved. On the red fields of carnage 
He pleads. By fire and flood, famine, earthquake 
and pestilence He pleads. 

The milder methods seem to have been exhausted; 


ft Rev. 19:11. § Rev. 19:16. J Jer. 44:13. 


105 


PEACE ON EARTH 


He now speaks in tones that stagger the powers 
and make the earth tremble. He vehemently urges 
them to take the way of safety, saying, “Repent, 
and turn yourselves from all your transgressions; 
so iniquity shall not be your ruin.” * 

Verily the guilt of the nations must be excessive 
when the requital is so appalling. Judgment is 
the Lord’s “strange work”; mercy is His “darling 
attribute.” He delights in mercy; He hesitates at 
judgment. He says, “I will have mercy, and not 
sacrifice.” 7 And yet the Lord must be sufficiently 
severe to justify Himself and vindicate His govern- 
ment. He must sustain His own Divinity and main- 
tain His Godhood. 

The rulers seem to be the chief objects of God’s 
wrath in dealing with the nations. His controversy 
is with them both personally and officially. He chal- 
lenges their ways when wrong; holds them respon- 
sible for results; demands that they return and 
bring the people back, or become a sacrifice in the 
attempt. When the government is out of harmony 
with God, when it antagonizes the will of Jesus, the 
rulers are the leaders in the transgression; they sin, 
and they make the people to sin. £ 


* Ezek. 18:30. f Matt. 9:13. £1 Kings 14:16. 
106 


THE LORD’S CONTROVERSY WITH NATIONS 


The mal-administration of King Pharaoh brought 
ten plagues upon Egypt. The country was impover- 
ished; the firstborn was slain; the army was over- 
whelmed in the Red Sea.§ The stubbornness of 
the crowned head involved the whole nation. The 
men in authority, who by mis-rule provoke the Lord 
to smite the people, must bear a ponderous load of 
guilt. 

The ruler represents the people; the personality 
of the state centers in the executive. The nation, 
as a unit, is morally responsible before the Lord in 
the person of its official head. Therefore his 
digression from the right, and disrespect for the 
rights of Jesus, affect all he represents. 

King Saul, by his incorrigible spirit and offen- 
sive conduct, brought defeat to the army of Israel 
and humiliation to the whole nation. For his diso- 
bedience to the Lord, the country lay helpless 
beneath the feet of the haughty conqueror. King 
Saul passed out of office in a tempest of God’s 
wrath; a storm that swept the land from border to 
border. ‘So Saul died, and his three sons, and his 
armour-bearer, and all his men, that same day 
together.” § 


S$ Bxo,: 14:27. (ilesama sich. 


107 


PEACE ON EARTH 


The men in authority have power to direct the 
people right, and have influence to lead them wrong. 
When the officials do right, they procure the Divine 
favor for their country; when they do wrong, they 
bring the Lord’s wrath upon the nation. The right- 
eous ruler is a public benefactor; his services are a 
benediction; the blessings of heaven come down like 
spring showers. * The unjust ruler is a malefactor; 
he brings evil upon himself and all he represents; 
precipitates the judgments of God upon his own 
head and upon all under his authority. 

Jeroboam, King of Israel, furnishes an example in 
point. He forsook the Lord and led Israel astray; 
based his government on expediency and adopted a 
profligate policy. { He gave loose rein to the baser 
passions of the people; the down-grade became pop- 
ular; the broad road was crowded. And the Lord 
pronounced judgment against Jeroboam as “the 
man who made Israel to sin.” § His reign was a 
vexatious disappointment; his country was often 
drenched with the blood of his subjects; his poster- 
ity was doomed to extinction. 





*Ti Sam, 23:4 77.15 Kings 23 2260. 
£1 Kings 12:32. §I Kings 15:30. 


108 


VIII 
WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL 
ACTION 


A mighty revolution will sweep over the world 
and change the center of influence and power. 
The whole machinery of earth and hell and 
heaven are set in motion to establish a kingdom 
whose foundation is Christ. 

—Leonidas Robinson, M. A., Ph. D. 


The night Jesus was born, an “heavenly host’ hov- 
ered over the suburban fields of Bethlehem, cele- 
brating the joyful event by chanting the Gospel of 
peace,—‘‘Glory to God in the highest, and on earth 
peace, good will toward men.” * 

The apostle John, in later years, “saw another 
angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the ever- 
lasting Gospel to preach unto them that dwell on 
the earth, and to every nation and kindred and 
tongue and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear 
God, and give glory to Him; for the hour of His 


*Luke 2:14. » 


109 


PEACE ON EARTH 


judgment is come.” + In the first instance we hear 
the message of peace; in the second, the message 
of judgment. 

The double reference is to the one and same Gos- 
pel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, in its 
opposite effects upon the people, according as it is 
received or refused. To some it is foolishness, and 
they perish; to others it is the power of God, and 
they are saved. ¢ 

How striking and alarming the change of signifi- 
cance in the Gospel! At first, the sweet voice of 
peace; at a later day, the stern language of judg- 
ment! ‘The wind has veered from the south to the 
north; from the soft tones of loving kindness to the 
sharp accents of retribution. Something has hap- 
pened. How account for the change? 

Too long the good news has been despised by the 
nations; too long they have rejected the terms of 
peace; the offers have been forfeited. The day of 
accounts has arrived; the King has arisen to the 
occasion; a just requittal is now in order; “the hour 
of judgment is come.” § 

The Gospel of Christ, the Son of God and Sav- 
iour of the world, has reached all lands and has 


+ Rev. 14:6, %2 I Cor; 01 18.) 1$Revi 14073 


IIo 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


been proclaimed in kindliest spirit. The enthrone- 
ment of Jesus, King of nations, has been heralded 
through all the earth. The call for submission to 
His terms and loyalty to His government has had 
wide publicity. Time for acceptance, at least for 
consideration, has been given. But they have not 
acted; have not even considered action. Long, long 
has the Lord waited, pleaded, remonstrated, threat- 
ened, chastised; severe discipline has often been 
used. 

In many cases, the utter destruction of entire 
nations became a moral necessity. Therefore cap- 
ital punishment was inflicted. May not the present 
powers that are incorrigible and _ irreconcilable 
expect to follow in their wake? Modern nations 
are built on the ruins of those that forgot God. 
Without doing better service for the Lord how can 
they anticipate a better fate? ‘The Lord is King 
forever and ever; the nations are perished out of 
His land.” § 

Notwithstanding God’s merciful appeals and 
judicial warnings, the nations, even to the present 
day, make no response. ‘Their procrastination 
resembles defiance. Not one on earth, in an official 





Psa. 10:16. 


OE 


PEACE ON EARTH 


way, deigns to honor Jesus, the “great King,” by 
admitting His authority and submitting to His will. 

The angel in mid-heaven, cried, “The hour of 
His judgment is come.” “The hour,’ a definite 
expression. The Lord told His disciples that “the 
times of the nations must be fulfilled.” * His lan- 
guage makes it evident that their world policies 
have a time limit. Continued disrespect for Jesus 
and resentment to His reign make the guilt pon- 
derous and the punishment imperative. Such pre- 
sumption and antagonism must have an end. 

Obstinacy under the light of the Gospel becomes 
intolerable. We live in the autumn of the ages. 
Beneath the autumn sun, the harvest ripens rapidly. 
Under the luscious light of the Gospel, character 
matures quickly; matures in righteousness, or in 
wickedness. The effect of the Gospel is ‘the savor 
of life unto life, or the savor of death unto death;”’} 
recuperation or decomposition. This is as true of 
nations as of individuals. 

When the harvest is ripe then it is reaped. The 
apostle heard one angel cry to another, saying, 
“Thrust in thy sickle, and gather the clusters of the 
vine of the earth, for the grapes are fully ripe. 


* Lukesel 2240 11) Cor. 2 10. 


I12 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and 
gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the 
winepress of the wrath of God.” + When the cup 
of iniquity is full, the Lord rises in judgment. When 
the clock strikes the hour, He loses no time. 

The fatal hour has evidently arrived; the judg- 
ment of the nations is doubtless begun. The powers 
have entered upon conditions of trouble and anguish 
unparalleled in history; yea, not merely unparal- 
leled, but desperate and beyond human control. 
Calamities have become disasters, catastrophes, cat- 
aclysms. Violent and stupendous changes are fre- 
quently occuring among the nations, causing con- 
ditions unexpected and losses inconceivable. The 
powers are on a tempestuous sea without a compass. 
The past is no guide for the present; the present no 
assurance for the future; the future is veiled with 
darkness. What shall the end be? 

In 1914 a shot was fired in central Europe, which 
became the signal for the world war. The nations 
have been in the stress of judgment ever since. 
From a hundred hilltops in France, all wreathed 
with flame and smoke and trembling like Sinai, the 
Lord in that war delivered sentence against the 


PRev, 614.10; 


113 


PEACE ON EARTH 


nations, and for years continued to execute judg- 
ment upon them. How else, in the light of God’s 
Word, can the great calamity be interpreted? 

Yet the judgment was tempered with mercy. 
From the stricken nations a wail of distress arose 
that pierced the sky. Then the Lord, in tender 
mercy, relented. The armistice was signed; the 
guns were silenced; the slaughter ceased. It was 
God’s own truce; a temporary cessation of war to 
consider the possibility of peace,—peace on the 
Lord’s own terms. 

The Lord has given the powers time and opportu- 
nity to review the situation and discover His hand 
and purpose in the gigantic struggle. But they have 
not responded. They have been too blind to see the 
Lord in the war; too deaf to hear His voice plead- 
ing for peace on the basis of righteousness; too 
obtuse to recognize His claims or consider His 
terms. They have not even given Him credit for 
granting the truce. In their view it was merely an 
incident of the war, simply a matter of their own. 

The Lord has been parleying with the nations 
ever sinec the armistice was signed. He has punc- 
tuated His appeals with warnings; has emphasized 
His arguments with alarming providences. His 
voice has been heard in famines, pestilence, earth- 

114 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


quakes and clashes on the battle-field. 

The Lord has delivered His ultimatum,—PEACE 
WITH RIGHTEOUSNESS. He enforces His ulti- 
matum with indications of another war. If hostil- 
ities must be renewed, the war will necessarily be 
on a larger scale than hitherto and carried forward 
to a definite conclusion. It will end in a permanent 
victory for RIGHTEOUSNESS; the world will 
be placed under the banner of Jesus; He will reign 
without obstruction, without a competitor, without 
a cloud to darken the earth or dim His glory. § The 
nations will then have peace, and not till then. ““We 
looked for peace, and there was no good; and for 
the time of healing, and behold trouble. {] 

The appeals of the Lord, powerful and pathetic 
as they are, seem to be lost on a perverse generation. 
When the guns ceased firing, God was quickly for- 
gotten. Since then many peace conferences have 
been held, but in none of them have the Lord’s 
terms been considered; at least no action has been 
reported. 

Though all the nations have not directly antago- 
nized Jesus as the world’s Ruler, yet none has offi- 
cially and publicly expressed its approval. With 


Sisarerr:10, {| jer. 14:19. 
TIS 


PEACE ON EARTH 


out exception they have been oblivious or opposed. 
Their hesitance makes the situation serious. What 
can be expected but that God’s truce may expire 
any day? 

The world war settled certain inter-national ques- 
tions; but the relation of nations to Jesus was left 
unsolved. This issue must be definitely and perma- 
nently decided. Woe to our world, should the Lord 
Jesus, relinquish His royal rights, give up the con- 
flict in dishonor! Earth would soon become the 
foreground of hell. Never can the nations attain to 
genuine peace till the Lord Jesus overcomes all oppo- 
sition. ‘The devil must be incarcerated in the bot- 
tomless pit and all his armies defeated. Then shall 
the nations have peace. 

The powers that stand in the Lord’s way, they 
that obstruct the coming of His kingdom, must 
yield to His will, or pass out of existence. Accord- 
ing to the Word of God, the kingdom of Jesus shall 
fill the whole earth, leaving no room for competi- 
tors. ‘‘All nations which Thou hast made shall come 
and worship before Thee, O Lord; and shall glorify 
Thy name. For Thou art great, and doest won- 
drous things; Thou art God alone.” * 





* Psa. 86:9. 
116 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


The serious question is, Will the nations embrace 
the opportunity and forestall another war? Will 
they make wise use of God’s truce? They can have 
peace without war by accepting the Lord’s terms; 
or they can have peace after being crushed in 
another cataclysm. Which will they prefer? They 
have their choice. But let them beware of pro- 
crastination; eventide has arrived; their sun may 
go down in darkness. They should know by obser- 
vation, that to continue their present policy is worse 
than lunacy; to oppose Jesus is pernicious folly. 
To conquer the Lord God Almighty, or nullify His 
authority, or even modify it, is entirely out of the 
question. ‘And the lofty looks of man shall be hum- 
bled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed 
down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that 
day.” + 

The present outlook makes patriots anxious for 
their country. Action, prompt action, radical 
action is an engrossing necessity. Will America 
accept the Lord’s terms of peace? Will England 
and France and Italy and other powers? Yea, will 
as many as have received the Gospel yield to King 
Jesus and be saved? Will they surrender to 


Tals a, 261 F. 


117 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Almighty God ere He arise to recall the truce and 
renew the war? Have the nations sufficient wisdom 
to place themselves under the great Sovereign and 
thereby terminate all war? Will they take timely 
action to prevent the crisis that is even now dark- 
ening the political sky? | 

The struggle on earth between right and wrong 
must have an end. Victory will not alternate from 
one side to the other for ever. Moral vacillation is 
intolerable; division of sovereignty between the 
Lord and the devil is unreasonable. At the present 
time, in the affairs of the world, it is Jesus and the 
devil; at a future day, it will be Jesus or the devil; 
the one or the other, but not both. Nor is there 
any doubt who shall be driven from the field. The 
devil must go, and with him all the powers that will 
not line up with Jesus; they that are not with Him 
are against Him. t¢ 

The day of decision is approaching; it may be 
near. One of the prophets of old saw it coming, 
and cried out, “Multitudes, multitudes in the valley 
of decision; for the day of the Lord is near in the 
valley of decision. The sun and the moon shall be 





~ Matt. 12:30. 
118 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shin- 
ing.” § 

Marvelous phenomena and terrifying events will 
appear, by which the presence and power of Jesus 
shall be made conspicuous. Vagueness concerning 
Him will terminate with astounding suddenness. 
The uncertainty of His reign over the nations will 
be cleared up amid appalling demonstrations of His 
power over men and nature. Only by loyalty to 
Jesus will any people be able to endure the splen- 
dors of that terrible glory. 

America and Great Britain, to their advantage 
and credit, have incorporated into their systems of 
government much of Christ’s teachings. While this 
is immensely valuable, it is not enough. A man may 
adopt the Decalogue as the rule of his conduct, and 
yet be deficient in his respect for its Author; he 
may merely be self-centered and self-respectful. 
Jesus cannot be well pleased, when His priceless 
lore is appropriated for law and He Himself dis- 
carded as Sovereign. He demands official and spe- 
cific recognition by the nations; insists on a public 
expression of allegiance to Him as their King. “Be 
wise now therefore, O ye kings; be instructed, ye 





§ Joel 3:14. 


119 


PEACE ON EARTH 


judges of the earth. Kiss the Son, lest He be angry, 
and ye perish from the way.” § 

Yea, the nations should be enthusiastic in their 
devotion to King Jesus; even demonstrative in their 
allegiance to His throne. Listen to those who in an- 
cient times understood the majesty of Christ Jesus, 
the greatness of His kingdom and the blessedness of 
His reign! ‘Their souls arose in adoration and loft- 
iest praise, singing, “Let us come before His pres- 
ence with thanksgiving, and made a joyful noise 
unto Him with Psalms; for the Lord is a great 
God, and a great King above all gods.” * “Sing 
praises to God, sing praises; sing praises unto our 
King, sing praises. For God is the King of all the 
earth, sing ye praises with understanding.” f 

The nations, even the most advanced, must take 
a wide step to get right with God. The leaders 
need vision, courage and mighty faith. They must 
be stirred with a passion of love for Jesus, with zeal 
for the Lord God of hosts, with enthusiasm like the 
flame that consumes the sacrifice on the altar. They 
must be men and women who can trust God and 
expect results which God alone can give. They need 
the ability to take the initiative in launching polit- 


$ePsay 2:10.) */ Psa os tart ba 4720. 


I20 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


ical enterprises vaster than any hitherto attempted. 
All this is needed to save the world from another 
catastrophe which is already terrorizing the human 
heart. Will the necessity be met and the tragedy 
averted? 

History affords but little light for the unprece- 
dented task; present conditions are as a midnight 
without a star. But we are not left in darkness. 
The Word of God is the great light, the sufficient 
light, the marvelous light. The Word in its two- 
fold aspect,—the living Word which is Jesus, and 
the written Word which is the Bible,—gives ample 
light for the occasion. They who have courage to 
adventure will have light to proceed, if they walk 
and work in the light of the Word. But nothing 
less than devotion to Jesus and a passion for His 
cause will produce hercism and patriotism such as 
the present hour demands. ‘The times call for con- 
secration of the highest order; lives fully surren- 
dered to the Lord; people in whom God dwells, 
through whom His own plan for the world will 
materialize. They who are filled with the Holy 
Spirit will lack neither light nor power; they will 
be available, efficient and successful. 

Will the rulers have wisdom and courage to break 
relations with the past and occupy new ground? 

121 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Weightiest issues beckon them on; the life of the 
nations is in jeopardy. The times demand nothing 
short of the Christianization of national govern- 
ment. Jesus shall ‘put down all rule and all author- 
ity and power. For He must reign till He put all 
enemies under His feet.” £ 

Will not the men in authority consider the danger 
and take immediate steps to conform civil govern- 
ment to the mind of Jesus? Secular government has 
been tried to the utmost and has ever proved a fail- 
ure. It has been weighed in a balance a hundred 
times, and every time has been found wanting. Why 
will not the rulers use all legitimate means to place 
the state on the rock-foundation, which is Jesus 
Christ the Son of God and Saviour of the world? 
Immediate action is imperative; delay may spell 
disaster. Why will not officials employ their powers 
with a sense of responsibility to God? 

Will not Christian patriots accept the task and 
risk conclusions? They may meet with temporary 
defeat. But civilization is at stake; the cause is 
worth a sacrifice. Their initial efforts may provoke 
criticism, even ridicule. ‘They may be considered 
as a contemptible minority. But the Lord and His 


a Corns 24: 


122 


, 
——— a 


NSS ee 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


hosts will be with them. They will be on the win- 
ning side; will be crowned as conquerors, ‘‘and more 
than conquerors” under Jesus Christ their leader. 
Such heroes will yet be honored as clear-sighted 
patriots; they will be placed on record as the pio- 
neers of the New Earth.§ Future generations will 
arise and call them blessed. 

Will not America and Great Britain join hands 
in the work of the world’s redemption? ‘These are 
the leading powers. They are highly favored of 
God and united by many bonds. They possess 
eminent qualifications for the great undertaking. 
How weighty their responsibility in the world’s 
emergency! By the hand of the Lord they have 
been placed at the front. Flooded with the gospel, 
refreshed with the Sabbath, adorned with schools 
and colleges, taught to pray in the name of Jesus, at 
liberty to walk in the ways of God and keep step 
with Him in working out His wonderful designs; 
how shall they escape if they evade the momentous 
issues by which they are confronted? Who knows 
why they are come to the zenith of power and influ- 
enec at such a time as this? { Why will they not 
demonstrate the value of Christian government by 


teat 65:17. k { Esth. 4314. 


123 


PEACE ON EARTH 


adopting it for themselves? Why will they not 
prove God’s Word by reaping the rich harvest of 
His favor. Wherefore do they hesitate? The 
world’s safety depends on speedy action. 

Secular government has always been defective in 
fundamentals, and a failure in its administration. 
It has ever been disastrous and a vexatious disap- 
pointment. Under secular government the nations 
have never risen above the possibility of jealousies, 
rivalries, revolutions, the horrors of the battle-field 
and the ghastly scenes of conquest and desolation. 
The rulers have never attained to what is possible 
for the well-being of the nations; the people have 
never reached the true standard of moral excellence, 
material success and personal happiness. 

Secular government is obsolescent; it belongs to 
the barbaric ages. The vessel is a treacherous old 
hulk; it never was seaworthy; much less now amidst 
the billows and breakers of these turbulent times. 
The billion and eight hundred million passengers 
should be transferred without delay to the majestic 
liner, whose Captain is the Lord Jesus Christ. Post- 
ponement may cause record-breaking disasters. 

Secular government can no longer be trusted, 
History. does not furnish-a single instance of suc- 
cess; the failures have been without exception. The 

124 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


footprints of the victims have all been in one direc- 
tion—toward the cemetery of self-determined 
nations that forgot God in their self-will. Why will 
the powers of today persist in following the same 
road? Can they hope for a better fate? Will they 
not be victimized by the same beast? Faith in 
human policies fares like a kid in a menagerie of 
wild animals. 

America faces a crisis and a task,—a world crisis 
and a Christian task. Likewise Great Britain and 
all the powers where the Gospel is preached. The 
work is urgent and brooks no delay. Civilization 
is imperiled; anarchy is undermining government; 
mis-rule is supporting anarchy. 

Why do not Christian people arise and lift up the 
banner of Jesus in plain view of the whole earth? 
The prophet has said concerning Jesus, “He shall 
stand for an ensign of the peoples; to it shall the 
nations seek.” * Let the royal rights of King Jesus 
be heralded; let His name and His fame be pub- 
lished; the nations will be attracted. They may 
take heart; hope may return; the world may be 
saved. 

Again it is written, ‘““And unto Him shall the 


* Isa. I1 IO. 


125 


PEACE ON EARTH 


gathering of the peoples be.’ + To the colors, O 
people of God! To the colors! Lift up the Gospel 
standard in sight of the world! Under the king- 
ship of Jesus Christ the nations shall yet be rallied 
and ransomed. 

What an opportunity for high-spirited service! 
Will not the followers of the Lord pause long enough 
to hear the voice of their Captain, as He shouts, 
“ATTENTION!” Will they not respond to the 
call of patriotism, of humanity, of God? O for a 
wide-awake church, eager for an enterprise that will 
tax her energies and prove her mission! O for a 
definite knowledge of God, that will impress the 
public and make men bow in His presence! O for 
a vivid consciousness of Jesus, the Superintendent of 
the world and all its people and affairs! O for a 
demonstration of Divine power that will convict the 
nations of their guilt and humble them in the sight 
of their great King! O thou Spirit of truth and 
power, come in Thy might; hasten to meet the 
world’s extremity. Convince and convict the 
nations ere their madness become incurable. 

“Tf the Lord be God, follow Him.” “If” is a very 
small word; yet large enough to cast a shadow over 


+ Gen. 49:10. 
126 


WORLD SAFETY REQUIRES RADICAL ACTION 


the greatest truth. How vague the world’s knowl- 
edge of God! How shadowy His eternal verities! 
Is Jesus a real Person, or a mere concept? Is His 
Word the truth or is it a myth? Is He progressing 
toward His grand objective, or is His work a fail- 
ure? Will not the Christian millions arise in the 
majesty of a fearless faith, and do the work that 
will remove the doubt? ‘They who know their duty 
and shirk responsibility have a dark outlook. Hesi- 
tation may draw the sharpest lightning of the gath- 
ering storm. “Woe to them that are at ease in 
Zion.” £ 

The unsympathetic and self-centered will not go 
unpunished. “And that servant, who knew his 
Lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did 
according to His will, shall be beaten with many 
stripes.” § 


Amos 6:1. § Luke 12:47. 


127 


TX 
AMERICA AND THE WORLD COURT 


The hiding of the power which determines 
the destiny of the nations is not in the cabinets © 
of kings or the heavy battalions of war, but in 
the closets of praying men, who have been raised 
by faith to the exalted rank of princes with God. 

—Daniel March, D. D. 


A supreme tribunal, with jurisdiction over all 
the nations, is a modern necessity. Our world, 
through the aid of science, invention, business enter- 
prises and Gospel activities, has become a neigh- 
borhood of nations. The cable, the wireless and 
the radio have brought all countries within speak- 
ing distance of each other. The mastery of the sea 
and of the air has made the people of all continents 
intimate associates. Friendly relationship is thereby 
greatly promoted; also liability to war is alarm- 
ingly increased. 

In a practical sense, distance has been wonder- 
fully minimized on our globe; yea, almost elimi- 
nated. Isolation has become impossible; separa- 
tion is wholly impractical. The world must cher- 

128 


AMERICA AND THE WORLD COURT 


ish universal comity and cultivate international 
co-operation, or perish in her own progressiveness. 
Without peace and good-will, material success is 
exceeding dangerous. 

The World Court is the child of a world-wide 
emergency. It has come to displace the sword as 
an arbiter and to restore peace on earth. Proximity, 
kinship, mutual interests and imminent dangers,—all 
plead with mighty eloquence for a permanent tribu- 
nal of international justice, in which the disputes 
and difficulties arising among the powers may be 
adjusted and war averted. 

War has done its best, and its worst, as a paci- 
fier and has utterly failed. War is human judgment 
side-tracked, that the military train, with its heavy 
freight of horrors, may have the right of way. War 
is reason lashed into frenzy, lost in insanity, sur- 
rendered to demons. God grant that the World 
Court may have the acumen and courage of an uner- 
ring and incorruptible judiciary and win the confi- 
dence of the world! May this Clearing House of 
the nations clear the political sky of all the dark 
clouds and bring sunshine to our storm-ridden 
world! 

One essential, however, to ensure success is a cor- 
rect standard of law and justice, by which the 

129 


PEACE ON EARTH 


nations may be judged and awarded. Without a 
true standard, failure is a foregone conclusion. 
Guided by expediency, or conducted in the spirit of 
favoritism, it will lose prestige and power, grope in 
darkness and perish in confusion. 

And on the other hand, founded on the changeless 
principles of truth and right, and functioning in the 
fear of Almighty God, the World Court will prosper 
and have good success. If this judiciary be of God 
and work in harmony with Jesus, the Judge of 
judges, it will weather every storm and bless all 
nations. But if it be merely of man, rising no higher 
than humanitarian principles, the foundation will 
surely succumb; the structure will collapse; the 
crash will terrify the world. Not being built upon 
the rock, which is Christ Jesus, its existence will be 
but temporary; its services will be a disappoint- 
ment. ‘‘And the rain descended, and the floods 
came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, 
and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” * 

The compendium of international law, as a basis 
of union and harmony among the nations, is not 
reliable. The concensus of the world’s governments, 
as a standard, will be a disappointment. The best 


* Matt. 7:27. 


130 


AMERICA AND THE WORLD COURT 


concept of human wisdom, as a guide, will be futile. 
The Word of God as the ultimate law, and the will 
of Jesus as the standard of authority, if duly recog- 
nized, will give the International Court dignity, 
stability and efficiency; and nothing else can. ‘By 
Me princes rule, and nobles, even all the judges of 
the earth.” + 

The new tower will doubtless be another Babel 
if the Divine element be lacking.t Through the 
anger of the Lord the builders will be confounded. 
“The Lord bringeth the counsel of the nations to 
nought; He maketh the devices of the peoples of 
none effect.” § The exclusion of Jesus from the 
court will result in the confusion of tongues among 
the judges. The Wonderful Counselor is needed to 
give the wonderful counsel that will pacify the world. 
The Prince of Peace ignored, the dove of peace will 
scarcely find a place in that hall for the sole of her 
foot. “I am the Lord; that is My name; and I 
will not give My glory to another.”’{]/ The Lord Jesus 
is the invisible Judge, standing in the assemblies of 
the mighty,** passing judgment upon the personnel, 
the procedure, the deliverances and effectiveness of 


+ Prov. 8:16. £Gen. 11:9. § Psa. 33:10. §[/Isa. 42:8. 
** Psa. 82:1. 


131 


PEACE ON EARTH 


the World Court. Therefore if the judges disown 
and dishonor Him, will He not reprove and con- 
found them? Let them beware of Him Who has 
said, “I the Lord thy God am a jealous God.” 7+ 

Will the United States of America take her place 
in the World Court? This is an important ques- 
tion; none more serious. Will our nation render 
service therein to the world according to her rank 
and power? Will she occupy a seat among the 
judges and use her influence to elevate the nations 
to conditions of peace, righteousness and prosper- 
ity? ‘The answer is vital to herself and more than 
interesting to the world. How can she refuse? Why 
should she even hesitate? 

Is there any nation more fit for the gigantic ser- 
vice, that may, by a judicial process, free the world 
from war? Should any be more ready to accept 
responsibility and contribute to such a philanthropic 
enterprise? To possess unlimited power, and yet 
stand aloof, watching the nations welter in their 
own blood,—that is not American. ‘To see them 
battle with storm and tide and perish in the raging 
waves without rushing all available means to the 
rescue,—that is not humane. The nation that saves 


++ Exo. 20:5. 


132 


AMERICA AND THE WORLD COURT 


its own life by withholding help from the perishing 
will lose its life with them that perish. ¢ 

Nothing but a moral reason, most cogent and 
convincing, can justify America in refusing to iden- 
tify with the nations in the World’s Court. Does 
such a reason exist? Alas, it is only too evident. A 
veto is in force; a prohibitive cause prevails; under 
present conditions wisdom forbids. 

The World Court, on its present basis, presents 
no rational inducement to Americans to take part 
it is proceedings. Integral relationship would prove 
bad statesmanship; an unwarrantable adventure 
doomed to disappointment and failure. 

The purpose of the World Court is grand, but 
the foundation is sand. When tested by coming 
events will the magnificent building stand? The 
basis is altogether inadequate; the wisdom of man 
is dangerous ground for such an establishment. A 
conglomeration of the world’s jurisprudence, as a 
working basis, must be unsatisfactory. Even an 
eclectic system of international law, selected and 
arranged with utmost care, would be unsafe and 
unsound. ‘Though human wisdom in our day may 
excel. all former. attainments, yet. if it. be. trusted 





t Luke 9:24. 


133 


PEACE ON EARTH 


alone, the light will go out in confusion and sorrow.§ 

Reason dictates that such an important and 
weighty structure should rest on bed-rock, which is 
nothing less and nothing else than the authority of 
the Lord Jesus Christ.{/ Jurisprudence without 
Christian prudence is a bog; whatsoever is built 
thereon will sink. America, with Christian enlight- 
enment, should have better judgment than to move 
into a building doomed to collapse. 

Let America strictly avoid all national compacts 
that void the claims of Jesus. Her permanent safety, 
influence and usefulness depend on her right rela- 
tion with the Lord. Jesus has said, “Apart from Me 
ye can do nothing.”* Without Jesus, effort finally 
fails; the best success suffers shrinkage, falls far 
below normal. On the wall of the Nations’ Judg- 
ment Hall, as it now functions, the hand-writing 
may be traced, “Thou art weighed in the balances 
and found wanting.” + 

But America can in no wise be excused from a 
world-wide service. The nations are anxious for a 
solution of their perplexing problems. They are dis- 
couraged, distressed, distracted, almost in despair. 
The night grows dark; will the morning ever dawn? 


Isa, so:r1. JI Cor. 3:11. * John: 15:5. aban eee 





134 


AMERICA AND THE WORLD COURT 


By what means can the disturbing demons be cast 
out? How will the powers be brought to their right 
mind? America knows. Let her impart the infor- 
mation and help the world to apply the knowledge. 
The nations that have the Gospel of Jesus know. 
Let them accept His terms, publish His will and 
save the world. 

In vain have the nations in their agony looked to 
councils, conferences, courts and leagues for relief. 
International diplomacy has failed. How shall the 
bleeding wounds be healed and health recovered? 
America has the knowledge; let her publish the 
remedy and apply the cure. 

The land of Sabbaths and Bibles and churches 
has the balm; and the Physician is there. Jesus is 
the only Healer; the Gospel is the only remedy. 
Let America, from her high altitude among the 
nations, make answer in spirit and language befit- 
ting the cause; the world will listen. By radio and 
cable, by wire and wireless the news will be broad- 
casted and there will be joy. “And the leaves of 
the tree were for the healing of the nations.” ¢ 
Great Britain, too, is Divinely qualified; her respon- 
sibility is heavy. O that the two were yoked 


¢ Rev. 22:2. 


135 


PEACE ON EARTH 


together in the service! They could draw the world 
out of the slough of despond; in the name of Jesus 
they could lead the nations into the uplands of peace 
and righteousness. 

O America, America, the world’s crisis is thy 
opportunity! In the adjustment of international 
difficulties, wilt thou not employ the higher wisdom 
—the wisdom that is of God. Through the strength 
thou hast in Jesus Christ, great things may be 
attempted; unprecedented tasks may be accom- 
plished; even the redemption of the nations of the 
whole earth may be the result of wise action. 

America has the light. Pity her ethics were not 
more perfect, and her government unequivocally 
loyal to Jesus. Yet she has the knowledge; let her 
speak out. The nations will listen to her message. 
Let her voice be heard among the powers, proclaim- 
ing, “The Lord reigneth; the world also shall be 
established, that it cannot be moved; He shall 
judge the peoples righteously.” § She shall have 
a hearing. 

O that America would adopt Bible principles of 
civil government! O that she would exemplify 
Christian statesmanship in the sight of the world! 


§ Psa. 96:10. 
136 


AMERICA AND THE WORLD COURT 


Then would she blaze the way through the tangled 
forests to the golden era of peace and happiness. 
She would soon have a following; a procession of 
nations would hasten to share in the same blessed- 
ness. “And many people shall go and say, Come ye, 
and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord.” J 

Let America become the latter-day voice in the 
wilderness, saying, ‘‘Prepare ye the way of the Lord, 
make straight in the desert a highway for our God.’”* 
Let America arise to the occasion; let Great Brit- 
ain improve the situation; let any of the powers 
seize the opportunity. Let the King’s highway be 
thus prepared; who knows how soon the thunder 
of His chariot will then be heard, as He hastens to 
save the world from the power of Satan and the 
dominion of evil! ‘For the earth shall be filled with 
the knowledge of the glory of the Lord, as the 
waters cover the sea.” 7 

A Christian form of government, administered 
in the Spirit of Jesus, will carry any power into 
worthy service and reasonable sacrifice for the wel- 
fare of mankind. And when the World Court, if 
it continue on the wrong foundation, shall be 
wrecked on the rock of secularism, and all other 





Pasa wecs isa: :A0°3. jHabw2ct4: 
137 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Christless organizations shall cease to exist, then 
shall the nations that have joined the league of the 
Lord be safe and happy. ‘Happy is that people 
that is in such a case as this; yea, happy is the peo- 
ple whose God is the Lord.” £ 


1. Psa: liAAnts: 


138 


x 
A LARGER PROGRAMME FOR THE 
WORLD’S SAFETY 


If ye will walk in my statutes, and keep My 
commandments and do them, then will I give 
you rain in due season, and the land shall yield 
her increase. But if ye will not harken unto Me 
and will not do all these commandments; I will 
even appoint over you terror, consumption, and 
the burning ague.*—Moses, the man of God. 


The world today is full of trouble and confusion 
for lack of knowledge; even bordering on despair 
for lack of the knowledge of Jesus Christ her Prince 
and Saviour. “Where there is no vision the people 
perish.” + O for a vivid conception of the Lord’s 
personality, presence and power! O for a lively 
sense of Christ’s sovereignty over the nations and 
His goodness toward all people! 

Not merely is Christianity itself needed, however 
clean and potent it may be; but also a realization of 


Stevi 20:32 and 20:14. + Prov. 20:18. 


139 


PEACE ON EARTH 


the life and love of Jesus throbbing in Christianity. 
Not only is a system of ethics and laws needed, even 
though it be beneficent and beautiful as the Golden 
Rule; but also a consciousness of the Lord’s own 
Self personally illuminating and vivifying the laws 
and ethics. Not merely is good government needed, 
though it be faultless in form and administration; 
but also a cognizance of the Mighty King, living, 
moving and having His being in the governing 
power, awarding prizes to the obedient and impo- 
sing penalties on transgressors. Not only is the dis- 
covery of the laws of nature a great achievement 
laden with blessings for the human race; but also 
the discovery of Jesus in the midst of nature’s 
forces, not merely sustaining and guiding their uni- 
form action, but slowing down and speeding up, 
reversing and suspending them at pleasure. Jesus is 
the most real, most active, most necessary Person in 
the world; He ought to be best known and most 
trusted. . 
A correct knowledge of Jesus, the Prince of Peace, 
is essential to the safety and stability of the world.t 
Let the nations become acquainted with their Divine 
Ruler; let them grow familiar with His kingly 





¥ Job. 22:21. 


140 


LARGER PROGRAM FOR WORLD’S SAFETY 


qualities, understand His requirements and respect 
His will; then shall there be peace. And there shall 
be not merely a cessation of war, but deliverance 
from the long list’ of evils that distress the people 
and destroy the earth. § 

War is always horrible. It stalks with mighty 
pomp across fair lands and over flourishing cities, 
leaving its broad path covered with desolation, 
darkness and death. Yet it is only one of the many 
horrors that harass the world. The plan for the 
abolition of war should include all disturbing ele- 
ments, that mankind may breathe freely and fear 
nothing. The elimination of all agencies by which 
the people are distressed and despoiled is practical 
and by all means should be accomplished. { 

The programme for the world’s safety should 
therefore be comprehensive; yea, all-inclusive, far 
exceeding anything yet attempted. It should include 
famine, pestilence, earthquakes, fires, floods, torna- 
does, typhoons, disasters of all kinds and every 
degree. All destructive forces should be suspended 
and eliminated, or harnessed and utilized. These 
are God’s corrective providences. ‘Transgression 
precedes correction; when the cause ceases, the 
curse will cease. * 


Srizele 34225. isa. 11:6. * Isa. 55-13. 
141 


PEACE ON EARTH 


The recurring violence in the operation of nature’s 
laws is the scourge of Almighty God. + Nor is the 
scourge ever used without just cause; moral neces- 
sity makes it imperative. God delights in mercy; 
judgment is His strange work; mercy flows freely; 
judgment comes with reluctance. But wickedness 
must be held in check; yea, absolutely controlled; 
by mercy if possible, by judgment if necessary. The 
Lord has not abandoned the world to let it take its 
own course; nor is He incompetent amidst the tre- 
mendous forces He has created. He possesses 
unlimited power; not a sparrow falls without His 
notice; + not a mountain trembles but by His will. § 

Man is not an innocent victim, helpless in the 
presence of catastrophes. His perversity releases 
the penalties stored away in nature, and, lo, he is 
crushed. And when crushed, an accusing voice 
resounds in his ears, saying, “Hast thou not pro- 
cured this unto thyself, in that thou hast forsaken 
the Lord thy God?” ff 

Lawlessness is the father of calamities. The skep- 
tic may ridicule the thought; but skepticism is 
moral insanity. The infidel, who cannot see God in 
nature, is blind as the man who cannot see the sun 


{Isa. 28:17. Matt. 10:29. § Hab. 3:6. § Jer. 2:17. 
i4e 


LARGER PROGRAM FOR WORLD’S SAFETY 


at mid-day in a cloudless sky. The breaks of 
nations and the freaks of nature are certainly within 
the power of the Almighty. They are permitted by 
reason of abounding sin; they are employed to sup- 
press wickedness. They can be prevented by recon- 
ciliation to God, or protracted by persistent diso- 
bedience to His will. “He turneth rivers into a 
wilderness, and water-springs into dry ground; a 
fruitful field into barrenness, for the wickedness of 
them that dwell therein.” * 


Jesus is “King of nations”; likewise He is Lord 
of nature. His power over the elements is unlim- 
ited. He can chain the lightning, or hurl it; + calm 
the storm, or ride it; t£ quench the spark, or fan 
it; §§ water the fields, or parch them; {| stabilize 
the mountains, or overturn their foundations. ** A 
bona fide covenant with the Lord and _ fidelity 
therein will banish all horrors from the earth and 
restore peace and righteousness to the inhabitants 
of every land; ++ security and prosperity will become 
universal. The promise of Divine care, which God 
gave to Israel, is valid today and may be appropri- 
ated by any nation. Thus hath He said, “And it 


* Psa. 107 :33. + Psa. 144:6. ¢£ Psa. 18:10. §§ Deut. 32:22 
atts -A5.00e Sa.) lo27 ott. ba.) 100 545, 


143 





PEACE ON EARTH 


shall come to pass, if thou shalt hearken diligently 
unto the voice of the Lord thy God, to observe and 
to do all His commandments, the Lord shall open 
unto thee His good treasure, the heaven to give the 
rain unto thy land in his season, and to bless all 
the work of thy hand.”+ 

The threatenings, too, like the promises, are valid 
and vital. They are full of force and fire to avenge 
the violation of Divine law and bring just punish- 
ment upon the transgressor. Here is the sure alter- 
native; “But it shall come to pass, if thou wilt not 
harken to the voice of the Lord thy God, the Lord 
shall smite thee with a consumption, and with a 
fever, and with extreme burning, and with the 
sword, and they shall pursue thee until thou shalt 
perish.” § 

A nation is a moral person, a subject of God’s 
moral law. The Decalogue is the Divine rule for 
national behaviour. Deviation from it brings chas- 
tisements; compliance with it brings benedictions. 
Obedience to Jesus is fundamental to the well-being 
of the powers; allegiance to His moral government 
is imperative to the world’s safety. The standard 
is high, but nothing else is normal. A lower level 








t Deut. 28:1. § Deut. 28:15. 
id 


LARGER PROGRAM FOR WORLD’S SAFETY 


involves liability to weakness, distress, poverty, 
pestilence, oppression, revolution, battle-fields and 
desolation. The way is left open for excess in sin; 
and excess in sin is a sure cause of punitive calami- 
ties. 

Such calamities are intended to work a reforma- 
tion and save the nations. They are the barbed 
mercies of God, designed to check evil and prevent 
ruin. Escape is still possible, even after the Lord 
has pronounced sentence. The Lord waits to be 
gracious, saying, ‘“‘At what instant I shall speak con- 
cerning a nation, and concerning a kingdom, to 
pluck up, and pull down, and to destroy it; if that 
nation against which I have pronounced, turn from 
their evil way, I will repent of the evil that I thought 
to do unto them.” J 

The Lord’s method of inflicting providential 
chastisements does not imply that all who suffer 
are equally guilty. In society the people are inti- 
mately united; their interests are inter-braided. 
Nations and communities in the sight of God are 
regarded as units. In this respect whatever 
befalls one person may extend to many. “As the 
sun shineth upon the just and the unjust;” * so the 


(Jer. 18:7. * Matt. 5:45. 
145 


PEACE ON EARTH 


desolating storm sweeps the fields of the innocent 
and the impenitent. But in moral effect the differ- 
ence is wide. The calamity proves a blessing to the 
righteous; to the wicked man it becomes a curse. 
The one is humbled; the other hardened. The one 
is drawn nearer to God; the other is driven farther 
away. Corrective providences may not redeem the 
community; yet they who trust in the Lord will be 
benefitted. “The Lord knoweth how to deliver 
the godly out of temptations, and to reserve the 
unjust unto the day of judgment to be punished.’’} 

The forces of nature are all at God’s command. 
Fire and hail, snow and vapor, stormy wind and 
sweeping flood,—all are in His service, “fulfilling His 
word.” + When Egypt refused to obey the Lord, He 
sent swarms of flies, clouds of locusts, electrical 
storms, pestilence and death.§ When Israel did 
violence to a tributary people, the Lord sent three 
years of famine to remind the nation of the injus- 
tice; when the wrong was recognized and a requital 
rendered, the land yielded her harvests. ff 

Nature is the Lord’s great arsenal, stored with 
Divine munitions, to be used upon all who aban- 
don themselves to wickedness. When men were too 


Vout l Gte On a Esa, et4b Ole Oa ens 
ili Sam2rer, 
146 


LARGER PROGRAM FOR WORLD’S SAFETY 


cruel or too foul to be accorded the privilege of life, 
the Lord sent the Deluge; beneath that overflow of 
water “all flesh died that moved upon the earth,” 
except one ship load. ** When Sodom and Gomor- 
rah became lawless and indecent beyond endurance, 
the Lord rained fire and brimstone upon them; all 
were devoured by the enswirling flames except one 
family. “And no judgment,” says a_ notable 
writer, “has yet befallen the world, compared with 
the judgment that may at any time be revealed.” 
Nature is also the Lord’s provision house, stored 
with the bounties of His goodness, sufficient for all 
people in every land, and accessible to all genera- 
tions. ‘The abundance, variety and richness are 
beyond conception. Loyalty to Jesus is the key 
that opens this storehouse. ‘The nation that keep- 
eth the truth may enter in;”t she carries the key. 
God’s Word to His people Israel applies to all 
nations that observe the required conditions. He 
says to each and everyone, “‘All these blessings shall 
come upon thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt 
harken unto the voice of the Lord thy God.” § O 
earth, earth, take heart and be of good cheer! 
Though bleeding at a thousand wounds and crushed 


** Gen. 7:21. tIsa. 26:2. § Deut. 28:2. 


147 


PEACE ON EARTH 


beneath ten thousands burdens; though wearied and 
fainting in the rough and rugged road you travel; 
the Lord thy God is with thee; fear not, neither be 
dismayed. 

O ye nations, “tossed with a tempest, and not 
comforted,’’{] be of good courage. Put the Lord 
to the test by obeying His voice. His word has 
gone forth; it shall not return to Him void. “The 
Lord is not a man, that He should lie; neither the 
son of man, that he should repent. Hath He said, 
and will He not do it? Or hath He spoken, and 
shall He not make it good?” * 

No blessing has yet come upon the world that 
may be compared with the blessings that are wait- 
ing for the nations to get right with God. The 
larger programme for the protection of the world, 
for the safety and happiness of all the inhabitants, 
is surely in order. O for the men of faith and wis- 
dom, men of action and power, who, in the name of 
the Lord Jesus, will give it form and put it over! 


Visa. 54:11. * Num. 23:19. 
148 


XI 
THE FINAL DOWNFALL OF ALL 
INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


God’s purpose to give the world, through His 
people, civil and religious liberty, and to work 
His will for the enrichment of the race, was suf- 
ficient justification for ridding the world of this 
wicked and unrepentant people. 

—L. Robinson, M. A., Ph. D. 


Prophecy is quite definite respecting a future cri- 
sis. From the Bible we learn that a disaster is 
coming, which, in extent and havoc, will exceed ail 
that has ever occurred since the days of Noah 
unless it be prevented. Its prevention seems yet 
to be a possibility——a bare possibility. Repent- 
ance toward God and submission to Jesus Christ, 
the King of nations, would be sufficient to turn back 
the threatening calamity. But will the powers 
repent and submit in time to escape? 

The Lord’s pronouncement does not always com- 
mit Him to corresponding action. When He gave 


149 


PEACE ON EARTH 


judgment against Nineveh, the preaching of Jonah 
wrought repentance and saved the city. While the 
Lord is merciful and the impending danger tarries, 
how earnestly and incessantly should Christian 
people plead with the nations and entreat the Lord, 
that the great distress be averted! 

The world war was both judgment in execution 
and an urgent admonition to bring the nations to 
repentance. If the warning go unheeded, how can 
they escape the wrath that is to come? The iniquity 
cannot go unpunished; the predicted wrath will 
surely take effect. The Lord is not slack, as some 
men count slackness. 

The desperate war simply demonstrated the mad- 
ness of the nations in their effort at self-government 
independent of Jesus. It emphasized their duty to 
take counsel from the “‘Wonderful Counselor,” and 
submit to His will. Peace does not spring from 
culture, nor safety from national agreements, nor 
mutual welfare from international covenants. 
Security lies in the character of the rulers; and 
character is reliable only when radiant with the Gos- 
pel and unequivocally loyal to Jesus on the throne 
that rules the world. The horrors of the late strug- 
gle were the legitimate outcome of national pros- 
perity when the Lord is forgotten. 

150 


DOWNFALL OF INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


The war will not have been in vain if at least 
some of the nations have learned to take their stand 
with Jesus. None has yet taken that decisive step; 
but the world is not without indications in that 
direction. Such will be the outcome as seen by the 
prophet in his vision of the final conflict. He fore- 
saw the world divided into two camps. The incorri- 
gible powers were all united in a league against the 
Church of Christ; the evangelized forces rallied 
in her defence. He speaks of ten powers, saying, 
“These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb 
shall overcome them; for He is Lord of Lords and 
King of Kings. And they that are with Him are 
called, and chosen, and faithful.” + 

The ultimate design of the incorrigibles will be 
the utter extinction of the Church of God; their 
objective will be nothing short of the overthrow of 
Christianity and the elimination of the name of 
Jesus from the face of the earth. 

But Jesus will not fail to have His army mobil- 
ized and ready; yea, “armies,” + prepared to meet 
the situation and sufficient for the supreme crisis. 
The nations favored with the Gospel will furnish 
the recruits for the Lord. Having accepted His 


TEREVenI7 cid.) + KEV. 19:14. 


151 


PEACE ON EARTH 


terms of peace they will be in position to serve 
under His banner in the great emergency. 

Christian people will be ready once more, as they 
had often been before, to adventure their lives for 
Christian liberty and the testimony of Jesus Christ. 
No sacrifice will be accounted too great to suffer for 
their Lord when His cause is in jeopardy. In that 
generation, when the crisis is reached, the spirit of 
the martyrs will reappear. The heroes of the cross 
will be loyal to Jesus at any cost; will follow Him 
on any field. “And the armies which were in heaven 
followed Him upon white horses, clothed with fine 
linen, white and clean.” § 

In its last analysis the crucial conflict is between 
Jesus and the devil. It began in Eden and has 
continued ever since, growing in intensity and des- 
peration; and it never was more acute than at the 
present day. The devil knows that his time is 
short; {] his cause is hopeless; his case is desperate. 
Evidently he is acquainted with the Bible and 
understands prophecy. He doubtless is aware of 
his doom and faces it with savage determination. 

The devil is strongly fortified in all secular gov- 
ernments and false religions. He exerts a subtle 


§ Rev. 19:14. { Rev. 12:12. 


152 


DOWNFALL OF INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


influence over every unregenerate soul on earth; he 
has a strong following. He has formed an alliance 
with two other mighty powers for military purposes. 
The three are in Scripture designated, ‘The beast, 
the false prophet, and the dragon.” * These con- 
stitute the malignant trinity. 

The ‘“‘beast” in prophecy is a symbol of the rulers, 
who administer government without regard to the 
Higher Power. Daniel in a vision saw four beasts, 
a lion, a bear, a leopard and “another!” + His inter- 
preter said, “These beasts are four kings.” The 
animal never rises above its own instinct. In secu- 
lar government human instinct is the mainspring of 
action. That form of government is independent 
of God; at best it never rises above humanitarian 
principles. Whether civilized or pagan it acts the 
beast. Such is one of the three allies which consti- 
tute the malignant trinity. 


The “false prophet” is the representative of false 
religions and all imitations of the true. He poses as 
a spiritual teacher, claiming authority over the 
souls of men and power to seal their eternal destiny. 
The false prophet holds sway over countless multi- 
tudes. The heathen world with its billion souls 








Tue evVelOcts: «7 Wan, 7-7. 
153 


PEACE ON EARTH 


responds to his counsel, is subject to his autocratic 
will, at least to a dangerous degree. Also no small 
proportion of the people in Gospel lands are under 
his influence. Such is the second party in the infer- 
nal alliance. 

The dragon, ‘that old serpent, which is the 
devil,’ seems to be chief among the three. The 
supreme command is in his hand. He is recognized 
as the generalissimo of the allied forces. Beside his 
authority over the beast and the false prophet with 
their armies, he is in full control of hell. All the 
legions of the lower regions are subject to his will. 
These war-worn veterans of the under-world have 
seen service on a thousand battle-fields and 
have never lost a fighter. They are all on the mus- 
ter roll, ready to take part in the conflict that will 
shake the foundations of the world. The entire 
forces and resources of the beast, the false prophet 
and the devil will be engaged in that gigantic strug- 
gle. 

Evidently the devil understands the import of 
the approaching struggle. It will be his final battle 
to retain power over the nations and the world. His 
kingdom on earth is at stake; the day of decision 


~ Rev. 20:2. 


154 


DOWNFALL OF INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


draws nigh; the clash of contending forces will soon 
be heard; the victory that hitherto alternated from 
one line to the other will now be final.§ If the 
devil be defeated he will be despoiled of his laurels 
and of his freedom; will be driven from the earth 
and consigned to solitary imprisonment.{ It is 
all on record; he knows it full well: he searches the 
Bible; he has learned what is “written.” ‘Therefore 
he will leave no stone unturned to win the fight, or 
to wreak vengeance on the human race. 

Already is the devil mobilizing his forces and pre- 
paring his munitions of war. His objective is the 
overthrow of Jesus and the utter annihilation of His 
kingdom on earth. To accomplish this he will spare 
no pains. Against Jesus and His Church the prodi- 
gious armies of anarchy and infernal ferocity are 
massing for the desperate drive. The prophet in 
vision witnessed their maneuvering and said, “And 
I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and 
their armies gathered together to make war against 
Him that sat on the horse, and against His army. * 

At this juncture the Lord Jesus gives a new dem- 
onstration of His personal presence and omnipotent 
power in providence. The apostle sees Him appear- 


§ Rev. 19:20. { Rev. 20:3. * Rev. 19:10. 
155 


PEACE ON EARTH 


ing in awful majesty as a military chieftain. He is 
Captain of the hosts of God. He is mounted on a 
white horse. + He wears the crown of authority as 
a helmet; He wields a sharp sword with terrific 
effect; on His vesture and on His thigh glitters the 
royal insignia, “KING OF KINGS AND LORD 
OF LORDS;” His army, “‘the called and chosen and 
faithful,” follow Him. Over the battle-field He 
dashes; upon His enemies He rushes; His sword 
smites with fearful execution; His garments are red 
with blood. ¢ 

What a strange spectacle! What surprising pro- 
cedure! Can this indeed be Jesus the Saviour of the 
world? Surely conditions have become desperate 
when the gentle Lamb § has become a raging Lion. {] 
How can such action be justified? 

The justification of Jesus on this momentous 
occasion is the alignment of the incorrigible nations 
under the devil against the Lord and His church, to 
effect her total annihilation and His utmost humili- 
ation. ‘And they gathered together to make war 
against Him that sat on the horse, and against His 
army.” ** 


+ Rev. 19:11. £Rev. 19:13. § Rev. 5:6. 
q Rev. 5:5. ** Rev. 19:19. 


156 


DOWNFALL OF INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


The prophet Joel in vision saw this dread event 
afar off. He writes like a reporter, describing what 
he saw and heard. He listens while the Lord issues 
His challenge to the incorrigible nations, saying, 
“Proclaim this among the nations; Prepare for war, 
wake up the mighty men, let the men of war draw 
near. Beat your plowshares into swords; let the 
nations be wakened up and come to the Valley of 
Jehoshaphat; for there will I sit to judge all the 
nations round about. Put ye in the sickle, for the 
harvest is ripe; come, get you down; for the press 
is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is 
great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decis- 
ion. The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and 
the stars shall withdraw their shining.” + 

Long, long had the Lord pleaded, remonstrated, 
threatened, chastised; but the nations would not 
repent and return unto the Lord. Now the day of 
grace is gone; the sun is set. “The harvest is past 
and the summer is ended.” + The hour for judg- 
ment has arrived. The incorrigibles were deter- 
mined to maintain their independence of Jesus, even 
at the cost of a war with the Almighty. He meets 


+Joel 3:9. tJer. 8:20. 
157 


PEACE ON EARTH 


them with a challenge; the day of decision has come; 
the issue must be settled now and for ever. 

The prophet mentions the valley of Jehoshaphat. 
The historic battle known by that name may illus- 
trate and explain the coming conflict, in which war 
will culminate, then terminate through its own rapa- 
ciousness. 

Jehoshaphat was the king of Judah. § Judah was 
the only kingdom that worshipped the true God. 
The kingdoms round about were hostile; they 
formed a league for the extermination of Judah. 
They issued a general invitation which became their 
bond of union. They said, “Come, and let us cut 
them off from being a nation, that the name of 
Israel may be no more in remembrance.”{| Ten 
nations formed the alliance. They massed a pow- 
erful army on the borders of Judah. 

King Jehoshaphat knew he had no army to cope 
with such an enemy. He was deeply distressed. In 
his trouble he appealed to the Lord for counsel and 
help. The answer filled his heart with courage. 
Immediately he led his few troops toward the foe. 
While drawing near he halted and called his choir 
to the front to sing a Psalm of praise to the Lord. 


$10) Chronrizo:t.fbear.oas4. 
158 


DOWNFALL OF INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


He evidently expected the singers to have an impor- 
tant part in winning the victory. 

While the sacred music was echoing among the 
rocks, a fierce mania struck the enemy; discipline 
utterly failed; their ranks were in wild confusion; a 
mutual slaughter occurred; the broad field was cov- 
ered with the dead; they fell by their own hand. 
Judah had won the battle without drawing a sword. 
The choir did it; their weapon was a Psalm. ¢ 

The Valley of Jehoshaphat! Will it have its 
counterpart in the final war? Yea, doubtless; yet 
the first will be only a miniature of the last; the 
latter will be out of all proportion to the former. 
The victory however may be won after the same 
manner, 

The scene of battle is not on record in The Reve- 
lation. The prophet kindly omits mention of the 
collision of forces. That shock of battle on record 
would shock the world. But the field of carnage 
under his skilful pen appears with graphic and 
ghastly vividness.§ The ground upon which the 
armies maneuvered and forced the issue with Jesus 
is covered with the slain. The kings have fallen and 
their mighty generals, the official staff and the brave 


¢ II Chron. 20:21. {II Chron. 20:22. §Rev. 19:18. 
159 


PEACE ON EARTH 


captains, the infantry and the cavalry; companies, 
regiments and armies lie mangled and mingled; the 
crimson field, as far as the eye can carry, is strewn 
with the fallen. There they lie all silent and pulse- 
less. 

The gigantic struggle is over; the shouting of 
captains has ceased; the fierce cry of charging 
troops has died away. ‘The groans of the wounded 
and moans of the dying have subsided; the stillness 
of death prevails. The silence is broken only by 
the caws of the crows and the screams of the vul- 
tures that darken the sky and cover the field; they 
never before had such a feast. “And I saw an angel 
standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, 
saying to all the fowls that fly in mid-heaven, Come, 
and gather yourselves together, unto the supper of 
the great God; that ye may eat the flesh of kings, 
and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty 
men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on 
them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, 
both small and great.” ff 

Such will be the end of the final war on earth. 
The victory of righteousness over iniquity will be 
decisive and permanent. Jesus will hold the field, 





q Rev. 19:18. 
160 


DOWNFALL OF INCORRIGIBLE NATIONS 


His powerful rival will disappear. The world will 
enjoy profound tranquility; the nations henceforth 
will be at peace. 

In Scripture the mention of “The Valley of Deci- 
sion” is quite significant. “Multitudes, multitudes 
in the valley of decision; for the day of the Lord is 
near in the valley of decision. For there will I sit to 
judge all the nations round about.” * The mastery 
of the world will then be settled; the power of Jesus 
will be demonstrated; His kingship will be 
approved; the hard problems of government will be 
solved; all will be decided on the basic principles of 
righteousness; the world shall then have peace. 

When the battle is over, where shall we then look 
for the malignant trinity? The beast, the false 
prophet and the dragon, where are they? 

Secular government, the beast; spurious religion, 
the false prophet; these and the organizations by 
which they were supported are utterly destroyed; 
“cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brim- 
stone.” + They will trouble the nations no more. 

But the devil, having done his best and worst to 
corrupt the earth and waste the nations, seeks safety 
in ignoble flight. The skulking coward! He finds 


*Joel 3:14. t Rev. 19:20. $Rev. 20:1. 
161 


PEACE ON EARTH 


no asylum. An angel from heaven, with the speed 
of lightning, is on his trail: He is arrested, placed 
in chains, locked up in darkness to flounder in the 
bottomless abyss, deprived of power and liberty a 
thousand years. § 

The great conflict ends in the overthrow of all 
incorrigible powers. ‘They would not submit to 
Jesus; hence their destruction became a_ moral 
necessity and their recovery an utter impossibility. 

What a world this will be when there is no devil 
abroad to deceive the nations and destroy the peo- 
ple! What goodness and gladness, what peace and 
safety, what progress and prosperity, what blessed 
families and flourishing churches, what thrifty busi- 
ness and jubilant nations! How great the glory of 
God! How triumphant the kingdom of Christ! 
How complete the happiness of man! 


§ Rev. 20:3. 


162 


XIT 
THE RE-CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY 


The apostle rises above the confusion, puts 
the trumpet to his lips, and with a blast of judg- 
ment for the enemy, and with the poetic music 
for the faithful, he helps the trembling soui of 
the Churck to see through its tears the new 
heaven and the new earth. 

“Gates and Keys to Bible Books.” 


—Dr. Robinson. 


The final conflict between right and wrong will 
strew a large portion of the earth’s surface with 
ruins. All powers antagonistic to Jesus shall be 
broken, as a potter’s vessel beneath a “rod of 
iron’; * all organizations independent of Jesus 
will fall. The crash will be appalling; the wreck- 
age fearful. The Christless institutions are many 
and mighty; their overthrow will fill cities and coun- 
tries with debris; heaps upon heaps, with multi- 
tudes buried beneath the rubbish. The Lord with 
reference to this event has given warning, saying, 
“Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also 





=P aa. 2-0. 
163 


PEACE ON EARTH 


heaven. And this signifieth the removing of those 
things that are shaken, as of things that are made, 
that those things which cannot be shaken may 
remain.” + 

On that occasion a new revelation of Jesus in His 
judgments, and a terrible display of His anger 
against wickedness, will astound the world. The 
incorrigible nations, in their pride and self-will, 
would not bow to Jesus, while He dealt with them in 
mercy. Now the tables are turned. The powers 
are prostrated; the overthrow is both humiliating 
and irrevocable. At the brightness of the Lord’s 
coming, at the piercing glance of His eye, the proud 
potentates are troubled; their glory fades; their 
courage melts. ‘And the loftiness of man shall be 
bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be 
made low; and the Lord alone shall be exalted in 
that day. And they shall go into the holes of the 
rocks, and into the caves of the earth, for fear of 
the Lord, and for the glory of His majesty, when 
He ariseth to shake terribly the earth.” 

The destruction of secular governments and false 
religions will liberate the masses from the thraldom 
of mis-rule and the bondage of vain worship. The 


+ Heb. 12:26. tsa. 2:17. 
164 


THE RE-CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY 


people long held in captivity will be suddenly 
released. In their unexpected freedom they will be 
as sheep without a shepherd. But not long. The 
blind leaders having perished, worthy and compe- 
tent successors will quickly appear. The Lord will 
have able men and abundant means in readiness. 

Having foretold the defeat of the malignant trin- 
ity, and the destruction of their armies and organi- 
zations, the prophet continues to relate his vision. 
He says, “And I saw thrones.” § The thrones were 
seats of authority prepared for the new incumbents. 
How the thrones were established is not revealed, 
but the fact of their existence is positively affirmed. 
The Lord, by Whom all just power is ordained, is 
equal to the occasion He has created. “Promotion 
cometh neither from the east, nor from the west, nor 
from the south; but God is Judge; He putteth down 
one, and setteth up another.” § 

“And they sat upon them,” ** he continues. Who 
sat upon them? Who are these persons that occupy 
the seats of honor and authority? From whence 
came the distinguished officials, so suddenly pro- 
moted to restore order and rule the world? The 
prophet at this point takes no time to explain. He 


Shey 20:4... i Psa: 75:0. ** Rev. 2074: 


165 


PEACE ON EARTH 


seems to assume that the casual observer will iden- 
tify them at a glance. | 

‘And judgment was given unto them,” jj the 
seer adds. ‘The new officials were not usurpers; 
they had not seized power; they had received it. 
The authority was given and they accepted the gift.. 
It had come from the legitimate source, which is 
Almighty God. The medium of communication is 
not mentioned; the Lord can use extraordinary 
means for unprecedented occasions. 

‘Riven the souls of them that were beheaded for 
the witness of Jesus, and for the Word of God.” ¢ 
Thus the character of the new rulers, not the per- 
sonnel, is described. These evidently are not the 
dead resurrected, but the dead personified. The 
martyrs of Jesus will not appear on earth for action 
on that spectacular occasion, but they will be dupli- 
cated. They who have fallen asleep in Jesus will 
not be raised to inaugurate the millennium, but their 
equals will be on the ground ready for service. The 
choicest men and women the world ever saw will 
be matched. 

Jesus gives us the key to this difficult passage. 
When referring to John the Baptist, He said that 





+t Rev. 20:4. ~ Rev. 20:4. 
166 


THE RE-CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY 


John was Elijah. § John, being interrogated on the 
subject, declined the honor, saying, “ I am not 
Elijah.” {| How reconcile the apparent contradic- 
tion? We must admit that both spake the truth. 
The only reasonable explanation is this: John was 
not Elijah in person, but he was by personification. 
John ministered in “the spirit and power of Elijah.”’* 

According to prophecy the decisive struggle 
between right and wrong clearly involves a persecu- 
tion. The desperate attempt of the incorrigible 
powers to extirpate the Church of Christ will be 
promptly met by brave men and women. That 
generation will produce martyrs, who will cheerfully 
jeodardize everything they possess for the cause of 
Jesus and seal their testimony with their blood. 
“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, 
and by the word of their testimony; and they loved 
not their lives unto death.” f 

The prophet on this occasion speaks of the “mar- 
riage of the Lamb.” ¢ Marriage is a sacred bond 
uniting husband and wife; a covenant binding them 
together for life. In symbolic language Jesus is the 
Bridegroom and the Church is His Bride. §§ The 


§ Matt. 11:14. J John 1:21. * Luke 1:17. } Rev. 12:17 
t Rev. 19.7. §§ John 3:29. 


167 


PEACE ON EARTH 


Church will be unified and fitted for the terrific 
struggle by entering into a covenant with her Lord 
and Saviour Jesus Christ. This will be an event of 
greatest interest; the enthusiasm will be intense. 
In anticipation of it the Church is heard, exclaim- 
ing, “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to 
Him; for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and 
His wife hath made herself ready.” {] 

The Holy Spirit will descend upon that generation 
of believers with mighty power. The Church will 
be noted for purity, harmony and enthusiasm; the 
people for consecration, holiness and self-sacrifice. 
The spiritual radiance of their lives will light up the 
surrounding darkness. ‘‘And to her was granted 
that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and 
bright; for the fine linen is the righteousness of the 
saints.” ** 

The covenant will emphasize one great principle, 
the sovereignty of Jesus. This will be the supreme 
test of ioyalty to Jesus who is Lord over all. To 
subscribe the covenant will imply complete surren- 
der to the Lord, service for Him to the limit and 
testimony for Him at any cost. The stern require- 
ment will doubtless sift the Church and greatly 


q Rev. 19:7. ** Rev. 19:8. 
168 


THE RE-CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY 


reduce her statistics. And yet the faithful will be 
very numerous. The prophet, as if unable to speak 
in figures, or even give an estimate, exclaims as 
if in a rapture of astonishment, ‘And I heard as it 
were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice 
of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thun- 
derings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnip- 
otent reigneth.” +7 

The great tribulation will reproduce the martyr 
spirit as in the olden times. Powerful men will arise 
again on behalf of Jesus Christ, when His Church is 
in peril and His name has become an execration. 
Samuel and David, Peter and Paul, Knox and 
Luther, Cargill and Renwick; these and others of 
their caliber and faithfulness will have worthy suc- 
cessors in prodigious numbers. The Lord is able to 
raise up His mighties for the emergency. ‘‘And he 
that is feeble among them shall be as David, and the 
house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the 
Lord.’ = 

When the distress is over, the battle-scared vet- 
erans of Jesus will be found in every land, qualified 
and willing to take up the work of re-construction. 
To them will be committed the re-organization of 


ti Rev. 19:6. ¢Zech. 12:8. 
169 


PEACE ON EARTH 


the nations that fell in the great overthrow; they 
will be entrusted with the government of the world. 
‘“‘And the kingdom and the dominion, and the great- 
ness of the kingdom under the whole heaven, shall 
be given to the people of the saints of the Most 
High, whose kingdom is an everlasting kingdom, 
and all dominions shall serve and obey Him.” § 
“And they lived and reigned with Christ a thous- 
and years.” § ‘These faithful servants of the Lord 
will constitute civil government on the basis of 
Christ’s authority and associate with Him in its 
administration. ‘They will exalt the nations from 
the pestilential grounds of secularism to the bright 
table-lands of righteousness and the fear of God. 
They will reign “with Christ’; will officiate on the 
moral heights where Jesus Himself administers the 
laws of His kingdom. ‘Then for the first time in 
history will the government of the world be elevated 
to its legitimate place, and its dignity as an ordi- 
nance of God be recognized and respected. Then 
will the rulers universally take their stand with 
Jesus their King, be clothed with His power, officiate 
in His name and honor Him as the Judge to Whom 
they must give account. “Yea, all the kings shall 


§ Dan. 7:27. § Rev. 20:4. 


170 


THE RE-CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY 


fall down before Him; all nations shall serve Him.’’* 

“And they shall reign a thousand years.” + This 
Christian dynasty will continue ten centuries. The 
honored veterans, entrusted with the re-construc- 
tion of society, will live their day, do their work and 
pass on. Like all preceding generations, “they will 
go the way of all the earth.” Men will come and 
go just as in former times, only on a higher plane of 
efficiency and honor. “There shall be no more 
thence an infant of days, nor an old man that hath 
not filled his days; for the child shall die an hun- 
dred years old; but the sinner being an hundred 
years old shall be accursed” + 

During the millennium, the world will be at its 
zenith of blessedness; the ten centuries will be the 
table-lands of happiness and prosperity. The chief 
feature of that happy age will be the manifestation 
of the presence and glory of the Lord Jesus Christ. 
“For the earth shall be filled with the knowledge of 
the glory of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea.’”’§ 

When Jesus came in His incarnation, the world 
was asleep; He was saluted only by a few shep- 
herds. When He comes to claim the nations as 
His inheritance, the world will be awake; He will 


PPsaw72-tt.. + Kev:- 20:4. \3.1sa,\,.05:20.) § Hab. 2:14; 
171 


PEACE ON EARTH 


get an ovation. King David, “the sweet Psalmist of 
Israel,” in vision saw the great event, and the dem- 
onstrations of excessive joy. In poetic strains of 
matchless sublimity he personifies inanimate crea- 
tion greeting the Lord with songs of praise. All 
nature is intensely excited; outbursts of admiration 
and gladness arise from every quarter. On this 
occasion it is creation that shouts, ““Hosanna to the 
Son of David: Blessed is He that cometh in the 
name of the Lord; Hosanna in the highest.” [| The 
heavens are jubilant and the earth triumphant; the 
sea lifts up its voice and the waves clap hands; the 
deep forests pour forth their anthems and the trees 
wave their salutations; the hills rejoice and the 
fields sing their pastoral songs. * 

But wherefore such universal rejoicing? The 
jubilant myriads return answer: ‘‘Because He 
cometh; He cometh to judge the earth; He shall 
judge the world with righteousness and His people 
with the truth” + 

Jesus will then for the first time receive due honor 
as. the illustrous King of the world. He will be the 


center of attraction in every community; the One 





fi Matt. 21:9. * Psa. 96:11. { Psa. 96:13. $1 Tim. 6:15. 


172 


is 


THE RE-CONSTRUCTION OF SOCIETY 


altogether lovely and worthy of universal praise; 
the blessed Mediator, through whose sacrifice and 
intercession the world has admission into the pres- 
ence and favor of God. 

Jesus, in new manifestations of His goodness and 
greatness, will be present in each locality and inter- 
ested in every country in the world. He will be per- 
sonally recognized everywhere, yet appearing visi- 
bly nowhere. “If any man shall say to you, Lo, 
here is Christ; or, lo, He is there, believe him not.” § 
No place will monopolize His fellowship; no city 
will enjoy preferred favoritism; no country will 
be the central state from which will emanate His 
laws and administration of government. ‘For as 
the lightning that lighteneth out of the one part 
under heaven, shineth unto the other part under 
heaven, so shall also the Son of man be in His day.’’f] 

The final victory of Jesus over Satan will be fol- 
lowed by marvelous results; the general destruction 
of organized evil on earth will make way for sur- 
prising consequences; the changes will be well nigh 
miraculous. At one and the same time the world 
will be rid of man’s monstrous mis-rule and God’s 
righteous retributions. The former will no longer 


§ Mark 13:21. {§ Luke 17:24. 
173 


PEACE ON EARTH 


be permitted; the latter will no longer be needed. 
No more shall nation lift up sword against nation ;* 
neither shall the sword of the Lord devour flesh. 7 
No more will the heavens be brass and the earth 
powder. No more will the fields be parched and 
the harvests fail. No more will the seas swallow 
down fleets and the waves engulf cities. No more 
will earthquakes crush the people amidst the ruins 
of their own homes. The enemies of God and 
humanity have been judged; the destroyers of the 
earth have been destroyed; the devil and his hosts 
have beeen overthrown; the world is at rest under 
the reign of King Jesus. 

The inhabitants of all lands have learned right- 
eousness and the Lord has been pleased to with- 
draw His judgments. Henceforth unmixed blessings 
and uninterrupted prosperity for all nations. Crea- 
tion sings her new song,—‘‘We give Thee thanks, O 
Lord God Almighty, Who art, and wast, and art to 
come; because thou hast taken to Thee Thy great 
power and hast reigned.’’t 





159.42 7n) 1p Detity32 42.) De ViL TELL 
174 


XII 
APPEAL 


Never was the world in greater need of compe- 
tent and trusty leaders; never were the leaders in 
greater need of consecration to Jesus and illumina- 
tion by the Holy Spirit. The task of bringing the 
nations into possession of the promised inheritance 
calls for a mighty force of workers. Will not the 
Church of Christ arise in the power of Almighty 
God and accept the challenge of the ages? ‘The 
people, who know their God and are strong to do 
exploits, are in demand. How imperative the call 
for such as have faith, vision, courage; who have 
spirit to initiate astounding enterprises and power 
to put them over; who have perseverance that will 
end in success, or in self-sacrifice. ‘And they over- 
came him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the 
word of their testimony; and they loved not their 
lives even unto the death.’ § 

Will not the friends of Jesus, the mighty millions 
who are devoted to His cause, voice His name, pro- 
claim His rights, reveal His presence, declare His 


§ Rev. 12:11. 
175 


PEACE ON EARTH 


glory, wax strong in testifying, increase in zeal and 
intenseness till His kingdom come, and His will be 
done on earth as it is in heaven? J Will they not 
conduct a campaign of publicity with eagerness and 
enterprise, till the great Lord of heaven be realized 
on earth to its remotest bounds? Will they not con- 
tinue the service of love and sacrifice of faith, till 
a holy dread fall upon men everywhere and they 
worship the living and true God? Then may the 
world be checked in its mad rush after wealth, 
pleasure and pernicious freedom; then may the 
nations be saved from a fatal plunge into lawless- 
ness and avoid an overwhelming cataclysm. 

When men begin to think seriously, intelligently 
and hopefully, Jesus will promptly have His right 
place in society and be honored as King and Sa- 
viour of the world; and there shall be peace. To 
this end the Lord speaks with stern authority, say- 
ing, “Thou shalt have no other gods before Me.” * 
O that the nations would listen! With melting ear- 
nestness He continues, “Turn ye, turn ye from your 
evil ways; why will ye die?” + O that the nations 
would consider! His merciful entreaties being dis- 
regarded, again His voice is heard, rising this time 
like peals of thunder, loud enough to paralyze the 


{.Lukewtt 22. 0:* Exo."20¢3: ana 33:11. 
I 


5 


APPEAL 


mightiest powers, saying, “Be still, and know that 
I am God; I will be exalted among the nations; I 
will be exalted on the earth.” ¢ Will not the ambas- 
sadors of the great King faithfully and fearlessly 
deliver His message—a message fraught with dread 
significance? While the day of mercy lasts will 
they not plead with 'God and man for the reconcil- 
iation that will save the world? ‘The nations may 
humble themselves in the dread Presence, ere they 
be consumed in the fierce anger. The sun has not 
yet gone down. 

In tenderest tones of love the Lord still pleads: 
“Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of 
the earth; for I am God, and there is none else.’’§ 

Jesus is the “Bright and Morning Star.” | With- 
out Jesus and His beneficent reign, the nations will 
never see the bright morning. O let the world be 
pointed to the Star! It heralds the coming of an 
auspicious day bringing peace and safety to all 
peoples. 

The name of Jesus is “as ointment poured forth,”’* 
It is fragrant enough and sufficiently abundant to 
perfume the whole world. Let the aroma spread; 
it may captivate the nations and be their salvation. 


Pihaesost0,. § Isa. 45:22. Rev. 22:16." * Song. 1:3) 
A wr: 


PEACE ON EARTH 


“Fis name shall endure for ever; His name shall 
be continued as long as the sun; and men shall be 
blessed in Him; all nations shall call Him blessed. 

“And blessed be His glorious name for ever; and 
and let the whole earth be filled with His glory; 
Amen, and Amen.” f 


FiESAu Tells 
178 


THE END. 












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